


Piano

by MikazukiMunechika305



Category: Keyakizaka46 (Band), Re:Mind
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-06-15 05:37:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15406149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MikazukiMunechika305/pseuds/MikazukiMunechika305
Summary: {Then, the transfer student came in—a girl with long, dark hair tied up in a ponytail. The other students started murmuring about how pretty she was, and Kyoko just sighed, letting her head slide down along her arms until it was resting on the table. In her opinion, their new classmate looked fairly normal.}Even though Kyoko hadn't been interested in Ayaka at all, the piano was what brought them together.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write a fic about Ayaka and Kyoko ever since I watched Re:Mind, so this is heavily inspired by their relationship in that drama. Also, the setting is quite similar to that, but I've made a few changes about their situations, and I made their school one that has a focus on music. In this setting, Kyoko plays the piano and Ayaka plays the violin. I hope you enjoy reading!

“Hey, did you hear? We’re getting a transfer student!” The classroom was filled with the excited chattering of the students.

“What do you think they’ll be like?”

“I dunno, I hope they’re a pretty boy.”

“Wouldn’t a girl be more likely, though?”

Kyoko watched her classmates in silence, listening to them for a few minutes before taking out her phone and putting in her earbuds. She wasn’t interested in rumors, and it wasn’t like she was overly excited to meet the new student either.

“Hey, Kyoko~!” Takase Mana, the girl sitting next to Kyoko, pulled out one of her earbuds. “What do you think the new student will be like?”

For a moment, Kyoko simply stared at her. Then, she shrugged slightly. “Dunno. And I don’t really care, either. As long as they’re not a real troublemaker.”

Mana laughed, punching her friend’s shoulder in a friendly way. “What are you saying? _You’re_ the troublemaker of this class, after all—I doubt anyone will want to take that spot from you!”

Kyoko gave her a small smile, took her earbud back, and closed her eyes. She got along with her classmates, but she figured she’d probably lose contact with most of them soon after their graduation. Right now, she had no friends close enough to her to spend time with them outside of school, but Kyoko didn’t actually mind that. Whenever someone asked her why she didn’t make more of an effort to make actual friends, she replied that she was fine with the way things were now and that, if she really needed friends someday, she’d find some later.

A few minutes later, their homeroom teacher entered the classroom. “Everyone, please get back to your seats!” And a moment later, he added, “And Saito-san, please take out your earbuds and pay attention.”

He had to repeat that twice until Kyoko heard him; she put her phone and earbuds away with a slightly sheepish grin and rested her chin on her hands, a bit absent-minded.

Then, the transfer student came in—a girl with long, dark hair tied up in a ponytail. The other students started murmuring about how pretty she was, and Kyoko just sighed, letting her head slide down along her arms until it was resting on the table. In her opinion, their new classmate looked fairly normal.

The transfer student turned to face the board and wrote her name down before turning back to the class again. “I’m Takamoto Ayaka; it’s nice to meet you.” She bowed slightly, and the class chorused their reply cheerfully.

“Alright, Takamoto-san, then… you can sit over there, next to Saito-san,” the teacher said, pointing at the empty seat to Kyoko’s left. “You don’t mind, do you, Saito-san?”

Kyoko raised her head just a tiny bit. “Huh? Oh, yeah, I don’t,” she said, shrugging, before resting her head on her hands again.

Ayaka sat down next to her, smiling. “It’s nice to meet you, Saito-san.”

Kyoko just nodded at her tiredly.

 

* * *

 

When lunch break started, Kyoko was just about to take out her earbuds again when someone suddenly touched her shoulder. “Uh, Saito-san?”

Kyoko turned around to the person with a raised eyebrow. “What is it?”

Ayaka smiled at her a little shyly. “Um, you don’t have to say yes if you don’t want to do it, but could you maybe show me around the school a little?”

“…well, I guess I don’t mind.” With a small sigh, Kyoko got up from her chair and left the classroom to wait for Ayaka outside.

The taller girl followed her hurriedly. A quiet “wow” left her lips when she saw Kyoko standing for the first time. “I didn’t realize you were this…”

“Tiny? Yeah, everyone says that.” A slight grin spread on Kyoko’s lips as she retorted, “You’re not _that_ much taller than me, though. And now come on. So, this is where the classrooms of the second-years are. You probably figured that out already, though.” Kyoko went ahead and showed her new classmate the school, occasionally throwing in a sarcastic comment that made Ayaka chuckle.

“Thank you, Saito-san,” Ayaka gave Kyoko a smile later, when they returned to their classroom. “That was… a nice tour.”

“If you say so. You seemed to have fun, anyways.” Kyoko nodded slightly, when she suddenly remembered something. “Ah, right. This is a musical school, after all—so what kind of instrument do you play?”

Ayaka looked a little surprised at that question. “I play violin. And you?”

“Me? Piano. Kinda plain, I know, but I like it.”

“No, it’s not plain at all! I’d like to be able to play the piano too, sometime, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. Can you maybe teach me sometime?”

Kyoko hesitated for a moment; this was the first time someone had put so much effort into getting along with her. Maybe Ayaka was doing it unconsciously, but there was something about her that made her different from the other girls in their class. “Well… yeah, maybe I can.”

 

* * *

 

In the afternoon, they had their respective music lessons, with the students being separated into groups by the instruments they played. Piano lessons were the only classes Kyoko actively participated in; but even then, she was still considered the troublemaker of the class.

Right now, she was sitting a bit behind her classmates, glancing at the grand piano in the middle of the room. She’d have liked to play it, but she needed the teacher’s permission for that, and she doubted she was going to get it. That was why Kyoko slowly moved her chair closer to one of the keyboards next to her as her teacher was talking, hoping that he wouldn’t notice and stop her.

As soon as she’d reached her destination, she took out her earbuds, plugged them into the keyboard, and switched it on. Placing her fingers on the white and black keys gave Kyoko a feeling of satisfaction that she usually barely felt. She loved losing herself in the music, which was part of the reason why she put in her earbuds and listened to music as often as possible.

Kyoko flinched when someone suddenly stepped behind her and pulled out her earbuds, making her lose the freedom she had felt until only a moment ago. “Saito Kyoko-san!” her teacher scolded her, looking incredibly annoyed. “I’ve called you three times already.”

Kyoko huffed quietly and looked away. “…sorry.”

“I’ll have to tell your parents that you’ve been misbehaving lately.”

She shrugged slightly. “Do what you want. It’s not like it matters; I’m not disturbing anyone, right? And my grades are good enough to get by, too.”

That was true. Even though Kyoko had been marked as her class’s troublemaker from the first day of her high school life, she had never done anything to actually disturb classes, and even if her grades weren’t great, she still somehow managed to pass her exams. Despite that, her teachers were annoyed by her attitude as much as she was annoyed by them.

The teacher sighed heavily. “Saito-san, maybe you should just put in some more effort…”

Kyoko looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, unimpressed. “Sensei, can we proceed with the lesson now? I came here to play the piano, not to listen to you scolding me. And so did everyone else.”

The other students chuckled, and their teacher briefly closed his eyes with a groan. “…well, your parents will hear from me, Saito-san,” he announced before returning his focus to the lesson.

 

* * *

 

In the next morning, Kyoko came to school early. She sneaked into the piano room and slowly walked over to the grand piano, looking at it in slight awe. She’d never played it before, so right now was her chance to do that. Making sure to be quiet, Kyoko sat down, opened the cover of the piano, and carefully placed her fingers on the keys. It felt even better than when she played the keyboard, and she decided to play a few notes.

The rich sound of the piano filled the room, and Kyoko couldn’t help but continue playing. Eventually, she started singing along softly, not noticing someone open the door to the room and entering.

Only when she finished, taking a deep breath and relishing the feeling of having played this grand piano, did she hear the soft sound of someone clapping. Instinctively, Kyoko slammed the cover of the piano shut and jumped to her feet, her first thought being that it was a teacher who caught her.

“This sounded amazing,” Ayaka said, a look of awe on her face.

Kyoko stared at her for a moment, then she sank back down on the piano stool with a groan. “What, so it was just you…”

Ayaka took a few steps closer to her, the awed expression still not vanishing from her face. “I didn’t know you played this well, Saito-san. It really was awesome.”

“Um… yeah, I mean, you’ve never heard me play before after all. But thanks.” Then Kyoko remembered the loud sound she’d made when she’d slammed the cover of the piano, and she jumped back to her feet, grabbing Ayaka’s wrist. “You have to come with me, Takamoto-san.”

“Eh, w-what?!” Ayaka followed her confusedly, running after Kyoko while the older girl was making her way to their classroom as quickly as possible. “Saito-san—”

“Hey, you two! No running in the hallways!” But the two of them barely even heard the complaint a teacher voiced when they ran past her.

Only when they’d arrived in their classroom did Kyoko stop, collapsing in her seat with a sigh.

Ayaka looked down at her in confusion before her eyes fell on Kyoko’s hand, which was still holding her wrist. “Saito-san, could you…”

Kyoko followed her glance and blushed slightly, immediately pulling her hand back and looking away. “Y-yeah, sorry.”

The transfer student put her bag down and slowly sat down in her seat next to Kyoko’s. “So… what was all of this about?”

The older girl looked around to make sure that nobody would hear her and then leaned over to whisper into Ayaka’s ear. “Actually, I was doing something forbidden. That’s why we needed to run. I didn’t have permission to play that piano, but I thought someone heard me closing its cover, so we had to get away from there.”

“Ah… wait, if it was forbidden, why did you do it in the first place?”

“Because I really wanted to play it! And there’s no way I’ll ever get Sensei’s permission, so I had to do it in secret.”

“But you’re so good.” The confusion was back on Ayaka’s face. “If you’re able to play that well, why shouldn’t you get permission?”

Kyoko sighed. “Because the teachers don’t trust me enough. They don’t know how well I can play because they don’t listen. They only see me as a delinquent who doesn’t pay attention to classes. Well, everyone says I’m quite boyish, and it’s true that I don’t really care about classes, but… it’s not like I’m completely unworthy of their trust.”

Ayaka listened in silence, her eyebrows furrowed slightly. Then, a smile spread on her face. “But, no matter what the others say, I think Saito-san is quite cute.”

Hearing that made Kyoko turn even redder than before. “W-what, seriously?”

Ayaka blushed as well and looked away, but she gave her a small nod. “…yes.”

“…j-just make sure nobody hears you say things like that. They’ll get a wrong impression.” With a quiet huff, Kyoko turned away and didn’t turn to look at Ayaka again even when the transfer student tugged on her sleeve slightly.

“Uh, Saito-san… even so, would you… maybe like to have lunch with me today?”

Hesitantly, Kyoko nodded.


	2. Chapter 2

Slowly, she started to understand why her classmates had been so fond of Ayaka right away. The taller girl was nice and easy to get along with, and after a few days, Kyoko even found herself able to think that Ayaka was pretty.

Their meeting in the piano room remained their secret. A while later, rumors started spreading around the school—rumors about a ghost living in the piano room, because a student had heard someone playing the piano, followed by a _bang_ , but when they’d opened the door to check what was going on, nobody had been there.

Kyoko had laughed loudly when she’d first heard that rumor. “There’s no way ghosts are real,” she’d told her classmates a bit cockily. “There was probably just someone playing in there and they left before that person could get there to check.”

For that, she’d been told off by Ayaka later that day. “I know you said that because it’s true, but weren’t you the one who insisted on being so secretive about what happened that day?”

“Yeah, right. But it’s not like anyone will ever find out that it was us… well, me.” Kyoko gave her a reassuring grin before an idea hit her. “Hey, Takamoto-san, do you wanna try something?”

Ayaka raised an eyebrow, a little doubtful. She’d only been at this school for a month, but she had quickly understood that not everything Kyoko did was perfectly compatible with the rules. And still, she had stuck with the smaller girl, for some reason unwilling to let Kyoko out of her sight. “That depends on what it is. If it’s something forbidden again…”

Kyoko shook her head, smirking slightly. “Don’t worry, you won’t be doing anything forbidden. I’ll be the only one doing that.”

It sounded intriguing, even though Ayaka had no idea what her friend—that was what she considered Kyoko by now—was talking about. Maybe it was because she had always been someone who liked to follow the rules in order to avoid complications. “…what are you talking about, Saito-san?”

Kyoko leaned closer to her to whisper into her ear. “Remember our meeting in the music room? Let’s repeat that. But this time, you bring your violin along, okay? We can play something together. I didn’t get to hear you play yet, after all.”

Ayaka looked at her in surprise; had Kyoko seriously just suggested that? She had heard from their classmates that Kyoko usually wasn’t a person to make advances if it came to doing things with her friends. “Um… I wouldn’t mind, but are you sure it’ll be fine?”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. We’ll do it in the afternoon this time, that way, there’ll be less students and teachers around. Does the day after tomorrow sound okay for you?”

“…yes, I think that should be fine.”

Kyoko found herself actually looking forward to that meeting. Usually, she wasn’t one to spend much time with her classmates, but it felt nice to do things with Ayaka. And she was also looking forward to hearing the other girl play her violin.

Two days later, they met in front of the school’s library after their afternoon classes. Kyoko smiled a little when she saw Ayaka carrying her violin case. “Hi. Seems like we’ve got a bit more than an hour until they lock the school.”

“Let’s go, then.” Ayaka nodded slightly and followed Kyoko to the piano room, looking around to make sure that there were no teachers to witness what they were doing.

Kyoko entered the room first, sitting down on the piano stool with a smile that seemed happier than Ayaka had ever seen her before. “Come on,” she told her friend while opening the cover of the piano.

Ayaka carefully closed the door and then took out her violin. “I’m not that great, though,” she warned, “you’re playing the piano much better than I can play the violin.”

“I’m sure you’re great,” Kyoko replied, making Ayaka smile.

The younger girl took out some sheets and placed them on a music stand before handing a second copy of them to Kyoko. And then, they started playing.

Before they knew it, an hour had passed. The two of them had never felt so complete, so comfortable with playing their respective instrument. When they stopped and Ayaka lowered her violin, they grinned at each other.

“You’re really good,” Kyoko said, gesturing at Ayaka’s violin. “Not that I expected you to be any worse than this, since you already made it into this school. Why do you keep saying you were bad at it?”

“Because… it’s not good enough, is it?”

“Oh, shut up. You’re at least as good as I am at playing the piano.”

That made Ayaka laugh quietly. “Okay. Thank you, then. Ah, by the way… I really like your voice, too.”

“You do? Everyone says it was too manly.”

“No, it’s great. It suits you, and I like how it sounds.”

Kyoko smiled a little. Then, she took out her phone and jumped to her feet in surprise. “What, it’s already that late?! We have to leave!” She made sure to shut the piano cover carefully this time while Ayaka put her violin back into its case, and then they ran.

They left the piano room, ran through the empty hallways and across the schoolyard, and only stopped when they’d passed the gate.

“Wow, that was close,” Ayaka muttered, breathing heavily but with a smile on her lips. “Look, we just made it in time.” She pointed at the school gate and indeed, only moments after they’d left, the janitor approached the gate to lock it. “This was a lot of fun, Saito-san,” Ayaka continued, sounding very happy. “I didn’t think I’d get to experience something like this anytime soon.”

Kyoko nodded slightly. “Yeah, it was fun. But, you know… after this, just call me Kyoko.”

“Really?!” Ayaka’s smile widened. “Then… you can call me Ayaka, Kyoko.”

“Okay, Ayaka.” Kyoko grinned at her and gave her a high-five.

 

* * *

 

“Hey, Kyoko’s been really friendly with the transfer student recently, hasn’t she?”

“Yeah, it’s really unusual for her to spend that much time with someone. I wonder if something happened to her.”

“Heh, maybe she just started seeing Takamoto-san’s appeal.”

“But earlier, I heard them calling each other by their first names! Something _must_ have happened, there’s no other explanation for this.”

Kyoko sighed and put her earbuds in when she heard her classmates talk like that. For a moment, she glanced at Ayaka’s empty seat next to her—the younger girl had sent her a message earlier saying that she’d caught a cold and couldn’t come to school because she felt so sick. Kyoko had immediately replied that she’d take notes for Ayaka and visit her to tell her about their homework after school.

When their teacher came in, Kyoko took her earbuds out by herself without anyone having to ask her to do so. During class, she paid as much attention as she could and diligently took notes for Ayaka—an action that made her classmates watch her in surprise.

During the break, Mana approached her curiously. “Hey Kyoko, did something happen?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“Well… you’ve never listened to what the teachers have to say this much. You even took notes…”

“Oh, yeah. That’s because Ayaka’s sick.” Kyoko gestured at Ayaka’s seat. “I said I’d take notes for her.”

Mana raised an eyebrow. “You two are really close, aren’t you?”

For a moment, Kyoko remained silent. “…yeah, I guess so,” she finally replied. “A few things happened, so we’re friends now.”

“ _What_ happened?”

“Sorry, that’s a secret.” Kyoko looked up at Mana briefly, a hint of mischief in her eyes, before putting her earbuds in again.

“Eh~, but everyone wants to know.”

Kyoko just shrugged, ignoring that comment. She tried to focus during the remaining classes and headed to the address Ayaka had texted her as soon as school ended.

The house wasn’t very far from school, so it didn’t take Kyoko long to get there. It was a surprisingly big house, and there was a wall with a gate surrounding it. Kyoko just stood in front of the gate for a moment, staring at the house with wide eyes, before ringing the doorbell.

“Yes, how can I help you?” a slightly metallic voice resounded from the intercom system, and Kyoko leaned down to speak into its microphone.

“Uh… I’m Saito Kyoko, a classmate of Ayaka’s. She asked me to bring her my notes from today.”

With a buzzing sound, the gate opened, and Kyoko hurriedly stepped into the garden, following a path lined by white rocks to the front door of the house. When she reached the door, a young woman in a maid dress opened it, bowing slightly. “Welcome, Saito-sama. Please allow me to show you the way to Ayaka-sama’s room.”

Kyoko nodded slightly and followed the maid up the stairs. The maid knocked at the door to a room on the first floor, calling out for Ayaka. “Ayaka-sama, there is someone who wishes to see you.”

They could hear a cough from inside, followed by a hoarse voice speaking up. “Who…?”

“Saito Kyoko-sama.”

“She can come in.”

Bowing again, the maid opened the door for Kyoko before closing it again and leaving them alone.

Kyoko entered the room, looking around in awe. “Whoa… you never told me you were this rich. This house is awesome.”

A quiet chuckle left Ayaka’s lips. “I’m sorry. I’ve had many friends who only spent time with me because of my money, so I decided to keep my family’s situation to myself this time. Please don’t tell anyone?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t.” Kyoko was still looking around in the room, seeming a little nervous now. “Um, can I…”

Ayaka smiled, shifting into a sitting position on her canopy bed. “Don’t worry, I’m still myself. You don’t have to treat me differently just because my house is like this. You can just sit here with me if you want.”

Kyoko nodded slowly and carefully sat down on the edge of the mattress. She put down her backpack and took out the notes she had taken. “So… here’s your notes.”

“Wow… you really paid attention in class, didn’t you? Thank you.”

Blushing slightly, Kyoko looked away. “Uh, yeah… well, maybe I should leave you alone now, so you can rest some more…”

“No, I don’t mind if you stay!” Ayaka burst out, turning red. “I mean… it’s pretty boring, being here all alone. My parents are out working, and the others have work to do, so I didn’t have anyone to talk to all day…”

“…fine, I’ll stay, then.” For a moment, it was silent, then Kyoko spoke up again. “Everyone was talking about us today.”

“Eh, really?”

“Yeah. They were talking about how close we got, and they wanted to know what happened. I didn’t tell them, though. Oh, and…” She picked up her bag and started digging through it until she found a sheet of paper which she gave her friend. “There’s a class trip coming up. We’re supposed to pick our roommates within the next three weeks.”

Now it was silent again. Ayaka read what the sheet of paper said, and waited for Kyoko to say something else, but the older girl remained quiet. “…Kyoko?”

“Hm?”

“Would you mind sharing a room with me?”

A small smile spread on Kyoko’s lips. “That’d be awesome.”


	3. Chapter 3

A few days later, when Kyoko came home from school in the evening, her parents were waiting for her in the living room. She was just about to go to her room when they called out for her. “Kyoko, come here for a bit.”

A little reluctantly, she obeyed, still carrying her bag. “What is it?”

Her mother was the first one to speak up, her eyebrows furrowed in disapproval. “One of your teachers told us that you’ve been breaking rules lately.”

Kyoko sighed quietly, not saying anything.

“He said you’d played the grand piano without permission, and that it happened twice.”

Now, Kyoko winced slightly. She’d thought nobody had seen her and Ayaka in the piano room, but apparently, she had been wrong.

“Say something, Kyoko. Why did you do that?”

“…I just wanted to play it.”

“Then why couldn’t you ask for permission?”

“Because there’s just no way I’d get it that easily! The teachers don’t like me after all.”

Her father frowned deeply. “Then maybe you should try doing something about that first, don’t you think? We heard you don’t pay attention in class and you barely do what the teachers tell you.”

A bit defiant, she folded her arms in front of her chest. “Of course I do what they tell me.”

“Kyoko, you listen to music and sleep during class. That’s not ‘doing what the teachers say.’ And it needs to stop.”

Kyoko huffed quietly, annoyed. “But I’m fine with it. My grades are good enough to get by, and I’m not disturbing anyone with my behavior.”

The sound of a slap resounded in the room and Kyoko’s hand rose to cover her aching cheek in shock. “Kyoko!” Her mother’s voice was even stricter and angrier now. “You will stop behaving like that. Do you even know how hard your father and I are working to make attending that school possible for you?! You should try harder to graduate properly!”

“I’m only in my second year! Graduation’s still far away, and there’s no way I’d get kicked out of the school!”

For a moment, it was completely silent in the room. Then, Kyoko’s mother spoke up again. “Well, if you care about your grades that little, then you can also attend a different, cheaper school, right?”

Kyoko’s eyes widened as she stared at her parents. That one sentence hurt her more than her mother’s slap from before. “No, I can’t!” Yelling that, she spun on her heels and left the living room, slipping her shoes back on quickly before leaving the house and slamming the door shut.

She ignored her parents’ calls as she ran as fast as she could, as far away from her house as possible. Only when she stopped in front of Ayaka’s home did she realize where she’d instinctively headed, and without even thinking about it for a second, she rang the doorbell.

“Yes?” a voice sounded from the intercom system, and Kyoko took a deep breath.

“This is Saito Kyoko,” she said slowly, her voice a little hoarse. “I was here a while ago to bring Ayaka some stuff from school… is she here, can I see her?”

For a moment it was silent, then the gate opened with the same buzzing sound as the first time. Kyoko nearly lost her footing as she ran to the entrance of the house, but she managed to recover herself just in time and made it to the door safely, albeit a bit out of breath.

A maid let her in, giving her a slightly questioning glance when she noticed her disheveled appearance, but Kyoko ignored her and headed to Ayaka’s room, only to be stopped by the maid. “Excuse me, Saito-sama… Ayaka-sama is not in her room.”

Kyoko turned back to her, a little irritated. “Then where is she?”

The maid led her to a door that looked like it led to a dining room and knocked at it before opening the door a bit. Through the opening, they could see Ayaka sitting at the far end of a long table. “Ayaka-sama? I’m very sorry to interrupt your dinner, but Saito-sama is here to see you.”

“Kyoko?” Ayaka immediately jumped to her feet when Kyoko entered the room, looking at her in surprise. “What are you doing here at a time like this?”

“Ayaka…” Kyoko had to pause and collect her thoughts for a moment, looking away. “I… sorry for bursting in here like this. I can leave if this is a bad time…”

Ayaka shook her head rapidly, placing a hand on Kyoko’s shoulder worriedly. “No, not at all. You look upset, what happened—or, no, have you eaten yet?”

Slowly, Kyoko shook her head, after which Ayaka clapped her hands twice. “Please bring a second plate for Kyoko,” she told the maid who had brought Kyoko to the dining room. “She’ll have dinner with me.”

The maid excused herself with a nod and returned with a plate filled with food that Kyoko had never even thought about, placing it on the table opposite to where Ayaka’s plate was. Kyoko was about to sit down when Ayaka picked up the plate again.

“That’s too far away,” the younger girl declared, walking to the other end of the table and putting the plate down right next to her own. “You don’t mind sitting here with me, do you, Kyoko?”

Smiling weakly, Kyoko followed her and sat down next to her. “Thanks, Ayaka.”

Ayaka gave her a warm smile. “No need to thank me. Now… can I ask what happened? This is the first time you come here all by yourself, after all…”

Kyoko sighed heavily. “I guess… I do owe you an explanation.” She looked away and took a deep breath. “I had a fight with my parents. They want me to transfer to a different school.”

For a moment, it was completely silent. Then, Ayaka gasped in shock. “What?! Why?”

“They… were really mad at me because I broke the rules. Apparently someone told one of the teachers that I played the grand piano, they must’ve seen us in that room both times we were there.” A groan of frustration left her lips. “And because I listen to music and sleep in class… Mum and Dad said if I cared about my grades that little, then I could attend a cheaper school.”

“Oh, Kyoko…” Ayaka hesitated briefly, but then hugged her friend tightly, feeling a little encouraged when the other girl didn’t resist. “That’s horrible. I… I’m sorry if this sounds selfish, but I don’t want you to go to a different school.”

Kyoko laughed bitterly. “Heh, do you think I want that? Of course I don’t. I’m gonna keep attending this school, no matter what they say. If I need to earn the money by myself, I’ll do it.”

Hearing that made Ayaka realize something. “Kyoko, by any chance, is your family…”

Kyoko turned her head away in silence. “…yeah, we don’t exactly have much money. Mum and Dad are working really hard so I can attend our school. They said I wasn’t appreciating their hard work enough.”

“But if it’s just about money, I can—”

“No, Ayaka!” Kyoko cut in, making her friend wince in surprise. “I don’t want your money. It’s a nice offer, and Mum and Dad would probably be happy to accept it, but… there’s no point in that, right? Why would your parents agree to give so much money to some complete strangers, anyways?”

Ayaka looked into her eyes seriously. “But, Kyoko… you’re not a stranger, you’re my best friend. I… don’t want to lose you.”

“It’s not like I wanna leave, anyways…” Kyoko sighed. “I’ll just find a job. I’ll earn the money by myself, it’ll be fine.”

“But still…”

Kyoko looked at her seriously. “Don’t worry. Now, let’s eat… what is this even, though?”

Ayaka managed a small smile. “It’s Pot-au-feu, a French dish. I somehow felt like eating it today.”

“Whoa… seems like you can really have whatever you want if you have enough money…”

“Well… it’s not really like that, though…”

But Kyoko had already started eating. She chewed slowly, trying to savor the taste since it was her first time eating something like this, and eventually said, “It’s nice. I’ll have to come here more often if you always have food like this.”

Laughing, Ayaka elbowed her gently. “Oh shut up, you can come here for something other than the food, too!”

After dinner, they headed upstairs to Ayaka’s room. “Do you want to spend the night here?” Ayaka asked, already heading over to her wardrobe. “I’ll let you borrow a nightgown if you want.”

“If you don’t mind…”

“Okay. Let’s have a proper sleepover party, then!” Ayaka took out a nightgown and playfully threw it at Kyoko who caught it with a chuckle.

They had a pillow fight, watched a movie together, and finally fell asleep on Ayaka’s bed—completely exhausted, but with smiles on their faces.

When Kyoko woke up in the next morning and found herself in Ayaka’s bed, with Ayaka basically lying on top of her, a yelp left her lips and she nearly pushed her friend off the bed. “A-Ayaka!”

Sleepily, the younger girl sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Kyoko, good morning…—eh?!” She scrambled back with a gasp, turning completely red. “Oh god… I’m sorry…”

Kyoko briefly closed her eyes, groaning quietly. Then she sat up to face Ayaka. “…I guess it’s okay. We were asleep after all.”

A little awkwardly, Ayaka nodded and went to her wardrobe to take out some fresh clothes. She headed to the bathroom to take a shower and meanwhile, Kyoko got dressed in Ayaka’s room. Then, while she was waiting for her friend to come back, she decided to check her phone.

There were ten unread messages and eight missed calls from her parents, and Kyoko reluctantly read the messages.

 **From: Dad**                                                 **Yesterday, 6:23PM**  
_Kyoko, this will have consequences._

 **From: Dad**                                                 **Yesterday, 6:39PM**  
_You will come home right now, Saito Kyoko._

 **From: Mum Yesterday, 7:04PM  
** _Kyoko, where are you?!_

 **From: Mum Yesterday, 7:09PM  
** _At least reply to our messages or pick up our calls!_

 **From: Mum Yesterday, 7:20PM  
** _Kyoko, are you alright?_

 **From: Dad Yesterday, 7:48PM  
** _We’ll take you off the school if you don’t come back soon._

 **From: Mum Yesterday, 8:10PM**   
_Will you come back if we promise not to take you off the school?_

 **From: Mum Yesterday, 8:42PM  
** _Kyoko, just tell us that you’re alright!_

 **From: Dad Yesterday, 9:15PM  
** _Just come home already, Kyoko._

 **From: Dad Yesterday, 9:20PM  
** _Your mother is sitting next to me crying because you haven’t been reacting._

Kyoko groaned quietly and quickly typed out a short reply to her father.

 **From: You Today, 6:27AM  
** _No need to worry, I spent the night at a friend’s place._

Surprisingly enough, a reply came almost instantly.

 **From: Dad Today, 6:28AM  
** _You have friends?_

Kyoko cried out in frustration and raised her hand to throw her phone against the wall when the door suddenly opened and Ayaka came back in.

“Um, Kyoko? What are you doing?”

She winced slightly and lowered her hand quickly. “N-nothing. My dad’s just ticking me off. Like, seriously, they were worried sick about me last night, and when I told them that I spent the night with a friend, all he replied was ‘Oh, you have friends?’”

Ayaka smiled weakly. “That’s really not very nice… if you need some distance from your parents, would you like to stay here for a bit? My parents left for an overseas trip yesterday, so they won’t be here for at least a week. And I wouldn’t mind the company.”

“Seriously?”

“Of course.”

After a moment of hesitation, Kyoko nodded. “I’ll do that, then. Thanks, Ayaka. Then… I’ll go home today after school, to pick up some clothes and stuff like that.”

“I’ll come with you! I mean… if you want me to, that is.”

“Alright.” A small smile spread on Kyoko’s lips, and then they heard a quiet grumbling sound. Kyoko couldn’t hold back a chuckle. “Sorry, I’m a little hungry…”

Laughing, Ayaka led her down to the dining room for breakfast.

 

* * *

 

After school, Kyoko led the way to her home. She actually felt a bit self-conscious about it because it was so different from Ayaka’s home, but since the younger girl had asked her to bring her along, she didn’t feel like she could have refused.

There was slight surprise in Ayaka’s eyes when she saw the small house that was nothing like her own, neither in size nor in appearance, but unlike Kyoko had expected, she didn’t make any comments on it. She just followed the older girl along curiously, looking around as if she wanted to completely memorize the situation Kyoko was living in.

Trying to ignore her slight embarrassment, Kyoko unlocked the door and entered the house first, calling out a reluctant “I’m home…”

“Kyoko!” Her mother came running from the kitchen, her expression something between relief and anger. “What were you thinking, staying away for that long?! We were worried sick about you!”

Kyoko’s eyebrows furrowed in irritation when she heard that. “Yeah, sure. That’s why Dad’s only comment was ‘Oh, you have friends?’ when I told him that I spent the night at my friend’s place.”

“Well, it _is_ rare for you to spend time with others…”

“That doesn’t mean it’s impossible for me to change.” Kyoko took a deep breath, trying to calm down. “Anyways, we’re just here to pick up some clothes and stuff. We’ll be gone after that; I won’t be coming home for the next week.”

“What?!” Only then did her mother notice Ayaka, who had been respectfully staying behind Kyoko until now. “Are you—”

Ayaka bowed slightly. “My name is Takamoto Ayaka; it’s a pleasure to meet you. I came to Kyoko’s class as a transfer student a few months ago.”

“You don’t need to tell her all that.” Kyoko grabbed Ayaka’s wrist and pulled her along.

Kyoko’s mother followed them, clearly irritated. “Wait, Kyoko! What are you doing?”

“I told you, we’re just picking up some things—”

“No, I mean, you can’t just move out for a week! Where will you even go?!”

“Ayaka’s house has more than enough space for me.”

“You can’t trouble a family you barely know like this…”

Kyoko spun on her heels, glaring at her mother. “Just leave us alone already, Mum. Besides, I’m not troubling anyone but you, so you should be happy if I’m not here for a bit.”

Her mother stood in shock, watching as Kyoko pulled Ayaka into her room and kicked the door shut.

“Hey, Kyoko… was it really necessary to say that?” Ayaka asked carefully. “I mean, she does seem to care about you…”

“Nah, that was the truth.” Kyoko’s voice was cold, and she turned to her wardrobe with a shrug. She picked a few pieces of clothing and threw them into a bag, then took her toothbrush from the bathroom and turned to Ayaka. “I’m done, we can leave.”

When they left her room, Kyoko’s mother was still standing in the hallway, waiting for them. “Kyoko,” she tried again. “Let’s talk about this properly…”

“We already did plenty of talking yesterday. That’s why I’m leaving in the first place. See you next week.” Kyoko resolutely headed over to the front door and held it open for Ayaka, following her outside.

Ayaka bowed slightly towards Kyoko’s mother and then left the house a little awkwardly. “So… this is what your life is like, huh…”

“It's not always like that. We used to get along until a certain _someone_ told the teachers about our secret…”

“It wasn't me!” Ayaka quickly defended herself, wanting to make sure that Kyoko knew that. “I promise it wasn't me.”

Kyoko sighed. “I know. I'll ask Mana if she knows anything tomorrow; she's closer to the others than I am.”

Ayaka nodded slowly. “Right… now, don’t you think we should focus on something nice instead of this whole… mess?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Well… we could do something nice together. Like, going to a café, or going shopping…”

Kyoko hesitated briefly, but then nodded. “Okay, that sounds good.”


	4. Chapter 4

Living together with Ayaka, Kyoko realized, was even nicer than she had expected. Not only did she get more and better food than she did at home, but she also enjoyed having pillowfights with her best friend.

Ayaka owned a lot of books, so they occasionally read stories to each other, which always resulted in a lot of laughter because they tried to make funny voices for each of the characters.

Their classmates started talking about them even more when they saw that Kyoko and Ayaka didn't tell each other _See you tomorrow_ after school and that they headed home together. _They must be living together_ was the first rumor that started spreading, and even though it was true, Kyoko and Ayaka kept any comments to themselves and didn't answer any questions about it.

After that, someone declared that _We already know that something happened between them, and now they're living together. So maybe they're dating?_ That was the one rumor they actively denied, even though both of them secretly wished it was true. Kyoko either ignored whoever asked her about it or shrugged and replied with a completely clueless-sounding _Why would I date a girl?_ while Ayaka usually turned red and muttered something about Kyoko being her best friend and not her girlfriend.

Two days after Kyoko’s fight with her parents, Ayaka suggested that they could cook something together. She wasn't very confident in her cooking skills since she'd barely ever entered the kitchen before, but Kyoko was happy to agree and asked Ayaka to make ramen with her.

Their attempt at cooking ended surprisingly well because Kyoko sometimes had to cook her own dinner at home, and Ayaka did what Kyoko told her to do quickly and eagerly.

In the evening, they sat in the dining room together, the bowls with their self-made ramen in front of them. “Itadakimasu!”  They smiled at each other and then started eating.

“It's good!” Kyoko exclaimed, sounding a little surprised. “Better than I thought, really.”

“You're right!” Ayaka agreed, her smile widening. “We can do this more often, if you want. It was fun.”

Kyoko nodded in agreement, already chewing on more of her noodles.

When they had finished eating, they returned to Ayaka’s room and Kyoko glanced at the TV hanging on the wall opposite to the bed. “Do you wanna watch a movie?”

“Okay, I don't mind.” They picked a movie together and then lied down on the bed, next to each other.

As the movie progressed, Kyoko started yawning, and a bit later, Ayaka felt a weight drop against her shoulder. A fond smile spread on her lips when she found Kyoko asleep, her head resting on Ayaka's shoulder. Ayaka couldn't help but pet her friend's hair gently for a while before she switched off the lights and went to sleep as well.

* * *

 

Four days after moving in with her, Kyoko asked Ayaka to head home without her. “I’ll come there later,” she promised, giving her friend a smile. She hadn’t told her that her job hunting had technically failed. Kyoko hadn’t been able to find a job as a waitress; instead, she’d been scouted by the manager of a cabaret club. Although she’d been a bit reluctant at first, Kyoko had quickly decided to give it a try. After all, she needed the money—and she figured it wouldn’t be _that_ different from being a waitress.

Kyoko would also have preferred to start working there after moving back in with her family, but the manager insisted on her starting right on the next day, so she didn’t have much of a choice other than telling Ayaka that something urgent had come up. She waited until Ayaka was out of her sight, then she took the bus to the city’s red-light district and went to work.

Her first night at work went relatively well. She was taught how to behave and later introduced to the customers already. Much to Kyoko’s own surprise, the customers seemed to like her, and she found serving them and talking to them surprisingly easy.

By the time she could leave the club, it was past midnight. Kyoko took the bus again, making her way back to Ayaka’s house, and then hesitated. She didn’t have a key, neither for the gate nor for the house’s front door, so she’d have to ring the doorbell. That would definitely wake someone up. And maybe Ayaka would get mad at her for staying away for so long…

Kyoko shook her head to get rid of those thoughts and rang the doorbell. But this time, she immediately recognized the voice resounding from the intercom.

“Kyoko?” Ayaka’s voice said, sounding thick with worry. “Is that you?”

Immediately, Kyoko started feeling a little guilty. “Yeah…”

It was silent. After a few seconds, the gate opened slowly, and at the same time, Kyoko could hear the sound of the front door opening.

She entered the garden and headed towards the door, but suddenly, there were hurried steps on the path to the door, and then, Kyoko felt someone jumping at her with enough force to nearly knock her back.

“Kyoko!” Ayaka’s voice was a bit muffled by Kyoko’s hair as she buried her face in her friend’s neck. “What were you doing for so long?! I was so worried! You didn’t pick up my calls or read my messages either…”

Only then did Kyoko remember that she’d switched her phone off during work. “Sorry, Ayaka,” she said, rubbing Ayaka’s back in what she hoped to be a comforting way. “I didn’t mean to make you worry. But I told you there was something I had to do, didn’t I?”

Ayaka nodded, but still found a slightly defiant retort. “But you didn’t say it’d take this long. It’s past midnight… I thought you’d gotten attacked or something.”

“No, it’s nothing like that,” Kyoko tried to calm her down. “I’m fine, I promise. Now, let’s go inside, okay?”

Sniffling quietly, Ayaka nodded and followed Kyoko into the house, holding onto her hand tightly. “Please… don’t do anything like this again, okay?” she asked quietly while locking the door. “Don’t stay away for so long. I hated not knowing where you were.”

Kyoko frowned slightly. “Sorry, I can’t promise that. I found a job, you know? And… I’m working the late shift, so…”

“You found a job? Where?”

“…at a bar.”

Ayaka nodded slightly and managed a small smile. “Congrats, then. That’s good to hear. Just… tell me when you have to go there again, okay?”

Kyoko nodded. “I can do that.”

“So… how did work go today?” Ayaka asked while they were heading upstairs to her room. “Oh, sorry, I completely forgot—did you eat dinner? If not, we can…”

“Hey, don’t worry. I ate already. And work was fine; it’s easier than I expected.”

“Really? That’s good, then.” Ayaka sighed in relief.

Then, they went to bed, and Kyoko was a bit surprised to notice Ayaka snuggling a bit closer to her than before—but she didn’t resist at all.

* * *

 

For the remainder of her time at Ayaka’s house, Kyoko tried to come back from her job as early as possible—although she never managed to make it before midnight. Although she’d told Ayaka at least three times to just go to bed and not wait for her, the younger girl sat next to the intercom system, waiting for Kyoko to return, every night.

Then, on the day Ayaka’s parents were supposed to return, Ayaka called out for Kyoko after they’d already said their goodbyes after school. “Wait, Kyoko!”

Kyoko stopped in her tracks, looking surprised when Ayaka ran to catch up with her.

“After all… can we spend the afternoon together? Your shift doesn’t start that early, does it?”

For a moment, the other girl hesitated. She preferred getting to work early because that gave her more time to put on her dress and make-up, but on the other hand, she and Ayaka recently hadn’t spent much time together outside of school. “…okay,” she agreed, smiling a little when she saw Ayaka’s relieved expression. “I don’t mind. Have you planned anything?”

Ayaka pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Not really,” she replied. “Maybe we can just… go shopping or something? And, uh… I’d like to go to the park for a bit, if you don’t mind.”

Kyoko nodded in agreement. “Sounds good to me. Then, let’s go shopping and eat something first, so we can go to the park after that.”

They ended up not buying anything, and Ayaka insisted on paying for Kyoko’s meal when they stopped by a small restaurant. Then, they headed to the park, finding themselves a bench in a somewhat secluded spot.

“Whoa, it’s nice here.”

“Right?” Ayaka smiled happily, although she somehow seemed nervous. “Um, Kyoko…”

“Yeah?”

The younger girl took a deep breath, reaching into her pocket. “You know, since we’ve been really close lately… there’s something I bought. I thought you might like them.” She took a small box out of her pocket and offered it to Kyoko.

Kyoko raised an eyebrow and took the box to open it. Inside were two simple, slim silver rings. “Ayaka…”

Her friend had turned completely red; she barely dared to look at Kyoko anymore. “I know, it’s probably super cheesy, but I liked them, and since some people have friendship bracelets… I thought maybe we could have rings…? It’s fine if you don’t like them—” She fell silent and closed her eyes in embarrassment, and then she winced when Kyoko flicked her finger against Ayaka’s forehead. “What…?”

“Idiot. Open your eyes.” When she did, she saw that Kyoko had already put one of the rings on her right pinky and was holding the second out to her, her cheeks reddening. “O-of course I like them. So just put yours on and stop ranting.”

Ayaka nodded weakly and slid the second ring onto her left pinky. “Okay… actually, there’s something else I’d like to tell you…”

Kyoko tilted her head to the side slightly, a curious expression on her face.

Hesitantly, Ayaka leaned in close to whisper into Kyoko’s ear. “Actually… when you were gone for so long, during those past nights… I realized something. I think I like you, Kyoko.”

For a moment, her friend simply stared at her, dumbfound. “You… like me?”

Ayaka whimpered quietly, nodding slowly. “I-I do, but…” Then, her eyes widened when she felt Kyoko leaning in even closer and leaving a brief peck on her cheek. “Kyoko…?”

Kyoko had turned even redder, but this time, she didn’t look away. “I… I like you too, Ayaka.”

For a moment, it was completely silent. Then, Ayaka wrapped her arms around Kyoko tightly, burying her face in the older girl’s neck. “I’m glad, Kyoko.”

They stayed like that for a bit longer, then Kyoko got up and patted Ayaka’s head. “Sorry, but I have to go now. We'll see each other tomorrow, right?”

Ayaka nodded slightly, smiling. “Um, wait… can I maybe come along? You could serve me a drink or two…”

Kyoko laughed and flicked her finger against Ayaka’s forehead. “I can't, sorry. My boss doesn't want us to be distracted from work, so we're not supposed to bring along friends or relatives. Let's do that kind of thing another time, okay?”

“...alright,” Ayaka relented, squeezing Kyoko's hand. “Have a good night, then.”

Kyoko gave her a reassuring smile and left her alone. Again, she took the bus to the red-light district and once she'd entered the cabaret club, she got put on her make-up and the beautiful, sparkling dress that she'd been given.

She really liked her dress; it was the most woman-like thing she'd ever worn. But despite that, or maybe _because_ of that, she felt a bit strange when she was wearing it. Secretly, Kyoko wanted to show Ayaka that she had a girly side too, but there was no way she could ever let her now-girlfriend know what kind of job she was working in.

What she didn't know was that Ayaka had followed her to her workplace. The younger girl had waited until she was sure that Kyoko wouldn't turn back, and then she'd followed her. She had gotten off at the same stop, silently wondering what Kyoko was doing in the red-light district, and then she had gasped in shock upon seeing her girlfriend enter a cabaret club.

Thinking rapidly, Ayaka was now trying to figure out what to do. She wanted to talk to Kyoko, and she didn't feel like she could wait until the next day. On the other hand, she knew that the club’s staff probably wouldn't let her in when she was wearing her school uniform.

That was why Ayaka hurried to get home. She entered her house without even talking to any of the maids, but then decided to call two of them to her room after all. “I need a dress and make-up that makes me look like an adult,” she told them, already opening her wardrobe.

The maids helped her pick a dress, did her make-up and braided her hair—when they were finished, Ayaka could barely recognize herself. “Thank you,” she gave the maids a smile and then proceeded to summon her chauffeur, asking him to take her back to the cabaret club. He looked a little worried, but didn't resist or ask any questions.

When they arrived, Ayaka got out of the car, trying not to stumble in her high heels because they were much higher than what she usually wore. She managed to make her way to the club safely and entered slowly, doing her best to appear as calm as possible.

Apparently, her make-up did a good enough job. The staff member at the door raised an eyebrow at her, but he let Ayaka in without asking any questions, pressing a card into her hand as she walked past him.

Ayaka looked at it, and when she found a phone number on it along with the words _Call me_ , she ripped the card into shreds right in front of the man's eyes. Then, she proceeded to look around for Kyoko.

“Excuse me, can I help you?” Another staff member approached her, looking at her half concerned, half curious.

For a moment, Ayaka hesitated, but then she decided to ask for the man’s help. “Yes, please. I'm looking for someone… I'm assuming she's a hostess here.”

The man looked a little amused now. “We have a few of those here,” he gestured at the tables behind him, smiling. “Maybe you know a name…?”

Ayaka nodded slowly. “...yes. Saito Kyoko.”

The man’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I'm sorry, Miss, but in this kind of place, we rely on aliases. The lady you're asking for is Yume-san, over there.” He subtly pointed at a table at the farther end of the room where a young woman was sitting between two older men.

Ayaka's eyes narrowed slightly and she was about to walk over to Kyoko when the man suddenly stepped in her way. “I believe it would be better for everyone if you did not do that, Miss. Please sit down over here; I'll send Yume-san here as soon as possible.”

A bit reluctantly, Ayaka obeyed and sat down on the sofa at the table he'd assigned her to. She had to wait almost twenty minutes until she heard steps approaching her that sounded slightly insecure.

“Please forgive me for—fuck, Ayaka?!” Kyoko clasped her hand over her mouth in shock when she realized what she'd just said. “What are you doing here?! And in this kind of dress, too… how did you even get in here? They don't let minors enter—”

“Kyoko,” Ayaka interrupted her softly, a sad expression on her face. “And how did _you_ enter this place? I know you're a few months older than I am, but you're still a minor, too.”

Kyoko stared at her, stunned.

“Don't you… think we should talk about this?”

Kyoko bit her lip, looking away. Then, she took Ayaka's hand and pulled her to her feet. “Fine, but let's go somewhere else.” She pulled Ayaka along to a more private room, causing a lot of the customers to start muttering curiously.

Ayaka followed her girlfriend along, her head lowered slightly. “Kyoko… why are you doing this?” she asked once they had entered the room.

“…I told you, I need the money.”

“But this kind of work is…”

“It pays well! And it doesn’t interfere with school and so on.”

Ayaka sighed heavily. “But… are you really sure this is what you want to do? What if someone finds out that you’re a minor? Won’t you get kicked out? And what if your parents find out about you working here?”

Kyoko shook her head, frowning. “That’s stuff I can’t think about if I want this to work out.”

“Please, Kyoko… does this make you happy?”

The older girl remained silent, chewing on her lip slowly. Finally, she hesitantly shook her head, making Ayaka let out a sigh of relief.

“Then please, won’t you try to find another job? See, if it was at a bar or something… we could apply there together, wouldn’t that be fun?”

Kyoko nodded slowly and opened her mouth to say something when suddenly, they could hear loud voices from the club.

“What do you mean, you’re not allowed to give out information on your customers?! I’m just asking if my daughter came here!”

Ayaka turned pale, suddenly looking nervous. “Oh no… that’s my father. They must have come home after I came here, and now…”

Kyoko jumped over to the door and locked it, pointing at the window. “You should get out, then. This is the ground floor, so it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Kyoko… no, I don’t want to leave now, just let them in—”

“But you’ll get in trouble if he finds you here, won’t you?!” There was genuine worry audible in Kyoko’s voice now. “I’ll say I didn’t know who you are. It’ll be fine.”

Their conversation was interrupted by someone knocking at the door. “Yume-san, open the door! I was just told that your current customer might be a minor, so she needs to leave right now!” It was the voice of the staff member who had led Ayaka to her table in the club.

“Which customer?” Kyoko yelled back at him, trying to make her voice sound as calm as possible. “She left already. I’m not feeling very well, that’s why I retreated here for a bit—”

“Please let me in to check, Yume-san. Her father is very worried about her.”

Kyoko glanced over at Ayaka briefly. The younger girl still seemed determined not to leave, and Kyoko couldn’t hold back a quiet groan. “You’re such an idiot, Ayaka,” she muttered under her breath, turning around to kiss her briefly. While Ayaka was still staring at her with wide eyes, Kyoko turned back to the door and reluctantly unlocked it.

Two men, the staff member and a man in an elegant suit who Kyoko assumed was Ayaka’s father, entered the room quickly. The latter only needed to take a quick glance at Ayaka to identify her as his daughter, then he spun on his heels and slammed his hand against the wall right next to Kyoko’s head. “What have you been doing to my daughter?!”

Kyoko rebelliously remained silent. She wasn’t one to resort to violence, and since she doubted the man would believe that she hadn’t done anything, she had come to the conclusion that it might be better not to say anything.

Instead, Ayaka stepped forward, trying to pull her father back. “Please leave her alone, Dad, she didn’t do anything, I came here on my own—”

Her father turned around to her, looking down at her angrily. “And we’ll need to have a serious talk about that. We’re gone for a week, and you already make friends with people from the red-light district? That’s not how we raised you!”

“No! She’s not that kind of person, believe me! Kyoko is—”

“Ayaka,” Kyoko cut in coolly. “You shouldn’t talk about that here.”

Ayaka looked at her in surprise, but then slowly lowered her head and nodded. “…fine. Dad, can we… talk about this at home? Please don’t be mad at Kyoko, I promise I’ll explain what’s going on.”

The look of disapproval was still on her father’s face, but he nodded, albeit seeming quite a bit reluctant. “Fine. But we’re leaving right now, and you’ll never come back to this place.”

Nodding sadly, Ayaka followed him to the door, wincing in surprise when Kyoko suddenly grabbed her hand. “Kyoko…?”

Kyoko flashed her a weak smile, apparently trying to encourage her. She pulled her girlfriend into a hug, mumbling into her ear, “That dress looks good on you, and whoever did your hair did a good job. You really look like an adult.”

Ayaka managed to return her smile weakly and leaned her own forehead against Kyoko’s for a moment, then she whispered _See you_ and followed her father out of the club.


	5. Chapter 5

Ayaka sat in the backseat of the car in silence while her father was sitting in the passenger seat. He was radiating pure anger, and while Ayaka was somewhat scared of what he might do to punish her for getting out of line like that, she had absolutely no regrets.

When they arrived at their house and got out of the car, he grabbed her wrist tightly and dragged her along as if he feared she’d try to run off, and Ayaka just walked behind him with her head hanging low. He took her to the living room where her mother was sitting, sobbing quietly into a tissue.

“Ayaka,” she burst out, jumping to her feet and hugging her daughter. “Can you imagine how worried we were when we came here and you were gone?! And when we tried to call you, we found your phone in your schoolbag… where did you _go_?”

Before Ayaka could even say anything, her father cut in harshly. “The red-light district, Masaki,” he told his wife. “The chauffeur said that was where he took her. And look at her clothes; she sneaked into a cabaret club. It’s a miracle they let her in.”

Ayaka’s mother, Masaki, clasped a hand over her mouth in shock. “A cabaret club?! Ayaka, that’s not the way we raised you! What were you doing there?”

“…meeting a friend,” Ayaka admitted reluctantly, knowing that she’d just get further into trouble if she tried to lie. “I just had to talk to her.”

“Have you gone there more often while we were gone?”

“No, of course not! I’m not that kind of person… this was my first time, and it wouldn’t happen again even if Dad hadn’t found me there!”

Her father scoffed slightly. “I’m not so sure of that. Your so-called friend is a hostess there, after all, right? Who said she won’t tell you to come there again?”

Ayaka turned away so her back was facing her parents. “Kyoko didn’t want me to come there in the first place. I went there on my own, not because she asked me to. And she’s much more than just a hostess!”

“Oh? What is she, then?”

Falling silent for a moment, Ayaka bit her lip hard. There was no way she could tell her parents that she’d confessed her love to Kyoko just a few hours earlier. “…we’re best friends,” she mumbled a bit lamely. “She’s my classmate, we get along really well. She only started working in that place a few days ago, and I wanted to convince her to quit her job there.”

Ayaka’s father looked like he was going to explode. “That means you became friends with a girl who’s poor enough to work in that kind of place?! I knew it was wrong to let you enroll in that school; we should just have gotten you a private tutor!”

“Ryo,” Masaki gently reprimanded him and turned towards Ayaka, speaking up gently. “Why would you become friends with a girl like that, if she’s that far below our standard?”

A deep scowl on her face, Ayaka turned to face them again. “It’s _because_ she’s below our standard. Kyoko is an amazing, interesting person—I’ve never felt as happy as I do now, when I’m with her. Her not having as much money as we do has nothing to do with that. It’s about what kind of person she is—but I doubt you know anything about that.” In her anger, she couldn’t help but add another thing that she’d secretly been thinking about for a while. “Of course you don’t, because all you care about is raising me properly so you can marry me off to some rich old man later.”

“Ayaka!” Masaki gasped, and Ryo took a step forward, slapping her hard.

His hand left a red mark on his daughter’s cheek, but Ayaka tried not to make a sound.

“Go to your room, Ayaka,” he ordered, his voice cold as ice. “From tomorrow on, you’re not attending that school anymore. We’re getting you a private tutor.”

When she heard that, Ayaka felt a fuse blowing in her mind. Without another word, she grabbed her phone from the coffee table, where her mother had placed it, and left the house. She ignored her parents’ calls for her and ran, nearly stumbling in the high heels she was still wearing, kicked them off somewhere along the way and tried to climb over the gate when she realized that nobody was going to open it for her.

She somehow made it down to the street, and then she was running again, subconsciously realizing that her feet led her to Kyoko’s house. Not daring to ring the bell and wake up Kyoko’s family, she collapsed in front of the door in exhaustion, resting her forehead on her knees and crying to herself quietly.

A while later, she heard the door of the house open and someone leaned down to her. “Are you alright?”

Teary-eyed, Ayaka looked up in surprise. “Saito-san…” she muttered hoarsely, recognizing Kyoko’s mother.

“Takamoto-san,” Kyoko’s mother said, sounding just as surprised. “What are you doing here? Can I help you somehow?”

“…I-I’m here to see Kyoko, but… she’s probably not home yet, is she?”

Kyoko’s mother shook her head regretfully. “Not yet. But… oh, dear, your feet are bleeding!” she gasped, apparently seeing some cuts on Ayaka’s feet due to the light shining from the hallway. “Come in, Takamoto-san, let me take care of that.”

Unable to resist, Ayaka let the woman help her up and followed her inside. She was a bit surprised that Kyoko’s mother made such an effort to help the friend of her daughter who she’d had a huge fight with, but maybe she just couldn’t see a girl suffer.

Kyoko’s mother led the way to the small kitchen and took out a first-aid kit, disinfecting the cuts on Ayaka’s feet before putting ointment and bandages on them. “What were you doing at a time like this, Takamoto-san?” she worriedly questioned. “And in clothes like that… did something bad happen?”

Ayaka nodded slowly, but didn’t dare explaining what had happened. She didn’t want to cause Kyoko even more trouble than she already had. “…I just had a fight with my parents, and I couldn’t walk properly in the high heels I was wearing, so… I guess that’s where the cuts come from.”

Kyoko’s mother nodded sympathetically and was just about to say something when they heard the front door opening. Kyoko came in, looking tired and annoyed, and she was just about to head to her room when Ayaka jumped to her feet, ignoring the pain, and took her girlfriend’s hand.

“Ayaka?” The older girl looked up at her in surprise. “What are you doing here? Didn't your dad take you home?”

“He did, but…” Ayaka's voice gave out and she looked away, unconsciously turning her bruised cheek towards her girlfriend. “...I ran away. Now I might be the one needing a place to stay.”

Kyoko's eyes narrowed when she saw the red bruise on Ayaka's cheek and she gently turned the younger girl’s face back to her so she could rest her forehead against Ayaka's. “Okay,” she mumbled. “I don't mind. My life isn't as comfortable as yours, but…”

“That doesn't matter,” Ayaka cut in softly. “Can we… maybe just go to bed now? I'll tell you what happened tomorrow.”

Kyoko nodded and took Ayaka's hand, leading her to her room without saying anything to her mother.

* * *

 

In the next morning, Ayaka flopped over on top of Kyoko with a yawn, unwilling to open her eyes just yet.

Kyoko woke up from the additional weight on top of her, and she tried to move away from Ayaka's hold. “Ayaka, we should get up…”

“No… hey Kyoko, can't we skip school today?”

“Are you serious? I mean, I don't mind, but aren't you usually the one who's so super proper and insists on not breaking the rules?”

“Yes, but… I really don't feel like going there today. Dad said he'd get a private tutor for me, so I don't even know if my name will still be called during today's roll call.”

“Eh?!” Kyoko stared at Ayaka in shock, and the younger girl nodded sadly.

“He was super mad because I became friends with ‘a girl who's so poor that she has to work in a place like that’ because you're ‘just that far below our standard.’ He wouldn't listen to anything I said… that's why I ran away.”

Kyoko silently leaned closer and hugged Ayaka tightly. They stayed like that for a while, then the older girl pulled back. “Okay, we can skip school. But we should still leave the house now, or Mum will know that something's up.”

Ayaka nodded slowly and reluctantly got up.

The two of them headed to the kitchen for breakfast, Kyoko nodded at her mother curtly and pulled Ayaka along to sit down with her.

“So, Kyoko…” The woman spoke up, continuing when her daughter remained completely silent. “Your father and I talked about all of this again. We'll give you one more chance. If your grades get better from now on, and if you stop disobeying the teachers, you can keep attending your current school.”

Hearing that, Ayaka reached out to touch Kyoko's hand and spoke up. “...in that case, Kyoko—”

“No, don't worry, Ayaka,” Kyoko cut in, shaking her head. “Fine, Mum. But even if I mess up, I'll keep going to that school. I'll earn the money by myself.”

Her mother sighed quietly. “Kyoko… it really is expensive, you know that.”

“Yeah. So what?” the older girl deadpanned, shrugging. “I can do it.”

“...yes, I'm sure you can.”

The rest of their breakfast time, they spent in silence. Ayaka felt bad for making Kyoko skip school just after having that kind of talk with her mother, but apparently Kyoko didn't care. They left the house a bit later, and Ayaka hesitantly took Kyoko's hand.

“Hey, Kyoko… shouldn't you go to school now, after all? I don't mind if you'd rather go…”

Kyoko resolutely shook her head. “Nope. I'm not in the mood to go, anyways, so I'll skip with you. It'll be fine.”

Ayaka gave her a weak, thankful smile. “Thanks, Kyoko. You're such an awesome person, it's sad that the others don't seem to see that.”

A slight blush spread on Kyoko's cheeks and she looked away. “...don't say that,” she muttered, a bit embarrassed.

They headed to the park and sat down at the lake in silence. A bit later, Kyoko spoke up again. “So… you told me what happened to you last night… I guess it's my turn to tell you now.” She managed a weak smile. “I got fired.”

Ayaka looked at her in slight surprise. “Really? Why?”

“The manager asked me what was going on, why I was hiding you in that room. And eventually he got me to mention that I'm still a minor, so…”

“Oh… how did you get to work there in the first place?”

“I have a faked ID, just in case I ever need it.”

Ayaka nodded slowly in understanding. Then, trying to think of a more cheerful topic, she got an idea. “I need some distraction from all this,” she announced. “Have you been to an amusement park before?”

Kyoko raised an eyebrow, shaking her head. “Nope. We didn't have the money. I've never really wanted to, though… it just seems kinda unnecessary, you know? Like, why do you need to pay so much money just to have fun for a few hours?”

“Then, can we go to one together today? You won't have to spend your own money for the entrance fee, so it should be fine, right?”

“No, you shouldn't do that—” Kyoko tried to protest, not wanting Ayaka to spend so much money on her, but the younger girl shook her head with a smile.

“It's fine, I want to do that. So, can we?”

A bit hesitantly, Kyoko nodded.

Ayaka smiled in relief and took Kyoko's hand, pulling her along to the train station. They took the train to the amusement park, and even though Kyoko still looked somewhat skeptical, she found herself looking forward to spending the day with Ayaka.

They got off the train and Ayaka paid for their entrance fees and then pulled Kyoko into the park eagerly. She took her on a few rides which the older girl enjoyed a lot, much to her own surprise. Then, Ayaka pointed at the Ferris wheel. “Can we ride that?”

Kyoko suddenly fell silent and looked away. “Um… sorry, I'd rather not, if that's okay.”

“Oh… okay, sure. I don't mind—we can have fun with other things.”

Kyoko gave her a small smile. “Thanks. I'm just… not very good with high places, you know.”

Ayaka squeezed her hand reassuringly. “I see. Then let's go and do something else. Or do you want to have lunch yet?”

“...okay, sounds good.” They decided to have pizza for lunch, and Ayaka ended up giggling uncontrollably when Kyoko poked a slice of pizza in her face—an attempt to feed her, Ayaka realized; maybe Kyoko was trying to do more ‘couple-like’ things now that they were actually dating.

The older girl turned completely red and turned her head away in embarrassment. “Don't laugh at me!”

“Sorry…” Ayaka clasped a hand over her mouth, trying to catch her breath and stifle her laughter. When she had mostly calmed down, she continued talking, giving Kyoko a still amused smile. “You don't have to force yourself to do something like this. I mean, it's cute, but… aren't we fine the way we are?”

Kyoko pursed her lips slightly, but nodded. “I guess so…”

Ayaka looked around to make sure that nobody was paying attention to them and then placed a brief kiss on Kyoko's cheek. “Thanks for doing this with me. This feels much better than anything my parents ever did for me.”

Kyoko turned red again, but she managed a smile. “That's good, then. We can do it again sometime.”

Smiling, Ayaka nodded eagerly.

When they had finished eating, they joined a few more rides and finally decided to go back home. On their way back to the train station, they held hands again, and when they arrived back home, Ayaka gave Kyoko a small smile. “I'll go back home now. Thanks for today, it was great.”

“Are you sure? Your parents…”

“It'll be fine. I have to go back; if I have to leave again, I'll bring my violin along this time,” she tried to joke a bit. “And besides… I think I should at least check on Mum and Dad. I'll call you later, okay?”

Looking a little reluctant, Kyoko nodded, stood on her tiptoes, and briefly kissed Ayaka's cheek.

Ayaka smiled at her thankfully and then headed home, not ringing the doorbell but unlocking and opening both the gate and the front door of the house by herself.

“Ayaka,” her father's sharp voice made her flinch slightly in surprise. “Where have you been?”

“At a friend's place,” she replied, not looking at him. He was still very angry, she could feel that; and she knew that running away the night before had probably just made everything worse.

Ryo’s eyes narrowed and he folded his arms in front of his chest. “A friend, huh? You're not talking about that prostitute, are you?”

That comment made a switch inside Ayaka flip. She lifted her head and glared at her father like she never had before. “Kyoko is not a prostitute! She was working there solely because she needs the money, not because she wants those men to… do whatever they want with her!”

“So? And how do you know that?”

“B-because…” Ayaka trailed off, averting her eyes. Then, she took a deep breath, fearing that if she didn't tell her father the truth, he'd make her stay away from Kyoko for good. “Because… Kyoko and I are dating.”

For a moment, it was completely silent around them. A maid peeked into the hallway, apparently considering to ask either of them something, but she quickly retreated to the kitchen when she realized that the atmosphere wasn't very good for that.

Then, Ayaka's father exploded. “You're dating someone? When did you plan on telling us?! And _that girl_ of all people—couldn't you at least pick someone else? A man from a good family, someone who's not that poor, someone who's not a _girl_ … what do you think people will say if they learn that you're dating a prostitute?”

“Dad!” Ayaka nearly screamed, glaring at him. “Will you stop calling her a prostitute?! She doesn't even work there anymore!”

“So she got fired after trying to kidnap you last night? That serves her right. Still, you're going to break up with her.”

“What?! No!” Ayaka immediately took a step back defensively. “I don't want that! You can't do that to us!”

Her father followed her, his figure looming above her threateningly. “You deserve someone better than her. There are many men out there who'd do anything to go out with you.”

“I don't want any of them! They're not as good as Kyoko, and now leave me alone!” Ayaka spun on her heels and stomped up the stairs to her room. She slammed the door shut and locked it before collapsing on her bed with a sob.

After a while, she wiped away her tears and took out her phone to dial Kyoko's number. The older girl picked up the call only seconds later, her voice sounding a bit worried. “Ayaka, you okay?”

“Y-yeah…” Although Ayaka had decided to try not to make Kyoko worry, her voice broke as soon as she heard the other girl talk. “Kyoko, I… I had to tell my dad that we're dating. He told me to break up with you.”

It was silent on the other end of the line.

Her thoughts racing, Ayaka tried to figure out what to say. “Kyoko, please don't worry. I won't break up with you, I promise. Dad can't force me to do that.”

A quiet chuckle made her stop talking. “I know, I know. I'm not worried about that.”

“Okay…” A small sigh of relief left Ayaka's lips. “Can we… maybe stay like this for a bit? We don't have to talk; it's just calming to know that you're there… since I don't think my parents will allow us to meet right now.”

“Yeah, sure.” On Kyoko’s end of the line, there was some rustling audible, so Ayaka assumed she was shifting into a more comfortable position on her bed. “So, just to make sure… will you keep coming to school, too?”

“Oh, that… I’ll try. I’ll ask my parents if they already called the headmaster, and if they did… I’ll need to re-enroll on my own.”

“Ah… I see. I’m glad you’re gonna do that.” Ayaka thought she could hear a small smile in Kyoko’s voice. “So you’re gonna come to school tomorrow?”

“Yes, why?”

The younger girl could hear Kyoko exhale briefly. “I thought maybe we could make some music together again. Don’t worry, this time I’ll ask for permission to play the piano.”

A smile spread on Ayaka’s lips. “Yes, I’d like that.”

“Good.” For a bit, they remained silent, then Kyoko spoke up again. “Um, I don’t mind if you wanna stay like this longer, but… shouldn’t we go to bed soon? Since there’s school tomorrow…”

“Ah, right.” Ayaka sighed quietly. “Okay. Good night, then; I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, good night. See you,” Kyoko repeated and hung up.

* * *

 

In the next morning, Ayaka got up a bit earlier than usual. She was hoping to avoid talking to her parents that way, but as she should have expected it, that plan failed.

Masaki was already sitting in the dining room, reading the newspaper that one of the maids had brought in from the mailbox. “Ayaka,” she spoke up and put the newspaper away.

Ayaka remained silent and didn’t look at her as she sat down as far away as possible from her mother.

“Ayaka,” Masaki repeated; she got up and sat down on a chair closer to her daughter. “Where were you yesterday? We thought you went to school, but when we called the teacher, he said you weren’t there.”

“I already told Dad.”

“Please don’t be like this, Ayaka.”

“Like what?”

“Well, you’re ignoring us…”

Ayaka scoffed slightly. “Well, I think I have every reason to do that. You’re ruining my life right now.”

Masaki frowned. “We just care for you.”

“Not for my happiness, obviously.”

“Then what would you like us to do?”

The girl folded her arms in front of her chest. “First of all, maybe you shouldn’t get me a private tutor because I like that school. And second, maybe you could tell Dad to stop calling Kyoko a prostitute?”

A sigh left Masaki’s lips. “You’re talking about that… person you went to see in that club.”

“Yes,” Ayaka deadpanned. “And she’s not even working in that place anymore, so there’s no reason to keep treating her like a prostitute. Not that there ever was a reason, anyways.”

“But Ayaka, she…”

“She’s an amazing person, Mum. If you gave her a chance, I’m sure you’d like her.” Masaki still looked skeptical, so Ayaka got up from her chair with a sigh. “You know, never mind. I’ll get breakfast from a conbini on my way to school. See you later.”

“Ayaka!” She was already halfway to the door when Masaki called out for her again. “…I’ll talk to your father,” she said slowly. “I can’t promise anything, but I’ll ask him to stop behaving the way he does now.”

Ayaka stood in front of the door for a moment, then she picked up her school bag and her violin case and left the house in silence, a little relieved. Her mother still hadn’t sounded very happy, but at least she seemed ready to give Ayaka’s wishes a chance now.

When she arrived at school, Kyoko wasn’t there yet, but she arrived only a few minutes later. “Ayaka,” the older girl greeted her, pulling her into a hug briefly. “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” Ayaka smiled, burying her face in the crook of Kyoko’s neck for a moment. “Mum said she’d ask Dad to stop treating me badly. She still didn’t seem happy, but at least… she seems to be giving us a chance now.”

Kyoko sighed quietly, patting Ayaka’s back. “Good, I’m glad. Now… I should probably ask for permission to play the grand piano so we can make our plan work out,” she decided and let go of her girlfriend. The older girl headed to the teachers’ lounge and knocked at the door.

“Yes?” someone called out and she opened the door to enter. “Saito-san,” her homeroom teacher greeted her, his voice a bit sour. “It’s nice to see you again. I hope you had a nice day yesterday.”

 _I did_ , was what Kyoko wanted to say, but then she decided to keep that comment to herself. “I’m here to ask for permission to play the grand piano.”

“And what makes you think you’d get that permission after you skipped school again yesterday? You haven’t exactly left a good impression on me recently.”

“Hey, I did pay attention to class more than before!” Kyoko burst out. “I think I’ve left a pretty good impression! Okay, I did skip yesterday, but I had… _reasons_ for that.”

Behind her, she could hear steps, and suddenly, she felt Ayaka’s hand on her shoulder. “Please let Kyoko play the piano,” the younger girl turned to their teacher. “I don’t know if you’ve ever listened to her playing, but she’s really good. She deserves to play the grand piano.”

Their homeroom teacher sighed heavily. “Takamoto-san,” he said slowly. “I know you and Saito-san have become very close lately, and it’s admirable how you’re defending her, but…”

“Please, Sensei!” Ayaka seemed ready to get on her knees in front of him, so Kyoko grabbed her wrist to stop her from that.

“Stop it,” she muttered into her girlfriend’s ear. “You don’t need to go that far.”

Witnessing their exchange, their homeroom teacher managed a wry smile. “Fine,” he finally agreed. “You can play it, just this once. On the condition that I’ll listen to you so I can get an impression of your abilities.”

“Thank you!” Ayaka immediately bowed thankfully, and this time, Kyoko reluctantly decided to do the same.


	6. Chapter 6

After school, Kyoko and Ayaka headed to the piano room, walking so close next to each other that their hands could casually touch each other’s. They heard their fellow students mutter around them curiously, but the two of them ignored the rumors that were apparently spreading again.

In the piano room, their homeroom teacher was already waiting for them. He had already opened the cover of the piano and gestured for Kyoko to sit down and start playing. “Are you ready?”

Kyoko nodded and sat down while Ayaka was taking out her violin. “I’ll play with her,” the younger girl said, and their teacher nodded slightly in agreement.

Soon, the comforting sound of the piano accompanied by Ayaka’s violin resounded through the room. Both of them were smiling, finally able to forget about the worries regarding their families as they lost themselves in the music they were making.

Their teacher was silent; he seemed to like what he heard, judging by the expression he was making when Kyoko momentarily took her eyes off the piano keys and glanced at him. When they finished, the teacher nodded, apparently content with what he had heard. “That was good,” he said, clapping his hands thrice. “I expected nothing less of you, Takamoto-san—but, Saito-san, why don’t you behave like someone with this skill level more often? You’d have many more chances than you have now if you just behaved like this in class.”

“…it’s not my style,” Kyoko muttered under her breath, looking away. “Besides, playing the piano is fun, and classes… aren’t.”

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, the teacher remained silent for a moment. Then, he nodded once more. “Both of you know about the concert we hold at the end of each year, right? The one where the best performers get a prize.”

“Yeah,” Kyoko affirmed, and Ayaka agreed with a nod.

“Good. If you’re fine with that, I’d like you to perform there.”

For a moment, they were completely silent, taking in what their teacher had said. Then, Kyoko burst out in surprise, “What? _Us_? Seriously?!”

“Yes. Both of you are very good—especially you, Saito-san, exceeded my expectations. That’s why I’m sure it would prove to be a great chance for you.”

Kyoko and Ayaka glanced at each other for a moment. “I'll do it if you do it, too,” Kyoko then said.

“Alright… let’s do it together, then,” Ayaka said with a smile, and Kyoko nodded slightly.

Their teacher smiled at them. “That’s great; I’ll give you the entry forms tomorrow, then. And, Saito-san, like I said… please try to put a bit more effort into your studies from now on, too.”

That comment made Kyoko furrow her eyebrows slightly. “…I’ll see what I can do.”

They said their goodbyes and left the school, Kyoko and Ayaka holding each other’s hand. “We’ll have to pick something to perform together,” Ayaka mused, looking down at her violin case fondly. “And maybe… I can use this against my parents.”

“What are you talking about?” Kyoko raised an eyebrow in slight confusion.

“Well… you know, they’re not exactly fond of you after Dad found us at that club. But maybe I can convince them to let me keep attending this school if we get the prize.”

“Ah…” Kyoko nodded thoughtfully. “Sure, you can try that. But then we’ll have to try _really_ hard.”

“Are you saying you can’t do it?” Ayaka couldn’t resist teasing her girlfriend a bit.

Kyoko gently elbowed her, grinning. “Idiot, of course I can. If there’s anyone who’s not confident enough in their skills, it’s you.”

Laughing, they made their way to the train station where they always separated. They hugged each other and then they took their respective trains home.

Ayaka decided to ring the doorbell this time, like she usually did. She greeted the maids as she entered, and headed to the living room when she saw light shining from its door.

“Ayaka,” her mother looked up from the laptop on her knees and gave her daughter an almost shy smile. “Welcome home.”

“…Hi, Mum,” Ayaka mumbled, sitting down next to her. “Did you talk to Dad yet?”

“He said he didn’t want to hear anything about this topic anymore,” Masaki said, sounding a bit regretful. “Apparently he really doesn’t like what he learned about you recently.”

“Do _you_ hate me now?” The question had left Ayaka’s lips before she’d had the chance to properly think about it.

Masaki sighed, looking away. “…I don’t know,” she finally said. “I don’t hate you, but… it feels a bit weird to know that you like a girl.”

“Is the problem that I like a girl or that I like a ‘prostitute?’”

Masaki frowned. “I suppose it’s the latter.”

“Mum, how many more times am I supposed to tell you? Kyoko isn’t a prostitute. Firstly because she got fired, and secondly because she’s not interested in that kind of thing.” Ayaka let out a long breath. “You know, you’ll probably get the chance to meet her soon.”

“What are you talking about?”

“We decided to sign up for the concert our school holds at the end of each year. We’ll perform something together, so we’ll have to meet up for practice and so on. The best performers will get a prize, so we were thinking… if we get the prize, can I keep attending this school?”

Her mother raised an eyebrow in surprise. “It really means that much to you?”

Ayaka nodded eagerly. “Yes! I know you probably can’t imagine it, but… it’s fun, Mum. Meeting everyone, spending my breaks with Kyoko, and making music together with them… I love it.”

Another small sigh left Masaki’s lips. “Let’s talk about this to your father during dinner,” she said. “I think if you really want to keep going to school, you can—but you know what happens if Ryo is against it.”

Ayaka’s head dropped a little, the words reminding her of how angry her father probably still was. “Yes, I know,” she mumbled. “Thanks, Mum.” With that, she retreated to her room and looked through the sheet music she owned, trying to already choose some things that they could perform at the concert.

A few hours later, the three of them sat at the dinner table in silence. Ayaka’s father was ignoring his daughter and eating quickly, as if he was trying to get away from the dining room as fast as possible, until his wife spoke up. “Ayaka, wasn’t there something you wanted to say?”

Ayaka flinched slightly in surprise, but then nodded and hesitantly looked up at her father. “Um, Dad…”

Ryo looked at her, his eyebrows furrowed. “What is it?”

“…at the end of the year, there will be a concert at school,” Ayaka started, still a little hesitant but gaining confidence as she was talking. “I’m going to perform something there—together with Kyoko. If possible, I’d like you to come there and see us.”

He slammed his chopsticks down on the table. “You want me to watch you and that—that person—”

“Dad, wait!” Ayaka cut in, lifting her hands defensively. “Please let me finish! There’s going to be some kind of contest, too… the best performers get a prize, our teacher said. I know you want me to quit going to school, but… if Kyoko and I get that prize, can I keep going to school?”

Ryo remained silent for a few minutes. Then, he scowled. “Fine. If you get that prize, you can keep going to school. If not, you’ll break up with that girl and we’ll get you a private tutor.”

Ayaka’s eyes widened slightly when she heard the words _break up_. “But I don’t want to…” She interrupted herself, taking a deep breath. “…fine. But we’ll get the prize, I promise. Good night.” She put down her chopsticks and got up, heading to her room. There, she took out her phone to text Kyoko.

 **From: You Today, 19:09  
** _Kyoko?_

Kyoko’s reply came only moments later; either she didn’t have anything to do, or she was ignoring her good manners and replying to Ayaka’s text even though she was supposed to do something else.

 **From: Kyoko Today, 19:10  
** _Yeah, are you okay?_

 **From: You Today, 19:11  
** _Of course, don’t worry. ^-^ But it seems like we’ll have to take the concert even more seriously._

 **From: Kyoko Today, 19:11  
** _???_

 **From: You Today, 19:12  
** _My father wants us to break up if we don’t get the prize. I definitely don’t want that, so…_

 **From: Kyoko Today, 19:12  
** _Fuck him_

Ayaka couldn’t hold back a small chuckle when she read that reply. In all her honesty, she hadn’t expected any other kind of reply, even if that was a bit more harsh than she had thought.

 **From: You Today, 19:12  
** _Aw, don’t say that. (You have a point there, though.)_

 **From: Kyoko Today, 19:13  
** _XD_

 **From: Kyoko Today, 19:14  
** _But we’re gonna get that prize, don’t worry. You won’t have to leave the school and we won’t break up._

 **From: You Today, 19:14  
** _Thank you <3_

That message was marked as _Read_ , but Kyoko didn’t reply right away. Nevertheless, there was a smile on Ayaka’s lips when she put her phone away. She assumed Kyoko had seen the message and turned red, like she often did when Ayaka did something she hadn’t expected—and since neither of them used emoji or anything similar very often, Kyoko had most certainly not expected the heart Ayaka had added to her message.

 

* * *

 

Weeks passed and turned into months—months during which Kyoko and Ayaka stayed at school longer than necessary almost every day. The piano room was the only place where they could practice together with both their instruments in the same place, since Kyoko didn’t have an own piano and there was none in Ayaka’s house either. Luckily, after her successful audition in front of their homeroom teacher, it was now much easier for Kyoko to get permission to play the grand piano, so practicing was not much of a problem for them as long as they finished before the school’s doors and gate were locked.

Sometimes, one or two of their teachers listened to their music and gave them tips on how to improve further, but eventually, their homeroom teacher shook his head. “You’re good,” he said, giving them a serious look. “Both of you, you’re really good. But if you really want to get first place in the contest, there’s… still a tiny something you’re lacking.”

That comment made Kyoko raise her head and slam one hand down on the piano keys, producing a clinking sound. “What is it? What do we have to do better?”

The teacher sighed, his eyebrows furrowed slightly. “I’d like someone else to listen to you,” he then replied. “She might be able to give you a feedback from someone else’s point of view.”

“ _She_? Who? Do we know her?”

“Saito-san should, yes,” the teacher gave Kyoko a slight nod. “I’m talking about our former student council president.”

“Yuuka-senpai?!” Kyoko burst out in surprise. “Last year’s winner? Are you serious?”

Ayaka raised an eyebrow curiously. “If she’s last year’s winner, she must be pretty good… it probably would be useful to hear what she has to say.”

“Yeah. She’s _really_ good; I’m not kidding. But she’s a _princess_ , Ayaka, maybe even more of one than you are. She was the student council president. I heard her parents own some kind of company, and after graduating from this school, she apparently went to a super prestigious college.”

Their teacher nodded in agreement. “That’s right. And she offered to come back to this school if anyone ever needs help from her.”

“She probably wouldn’t bother with someone like me, though…” Kyoko muttered under her breath, giving Ayaka a weak smile when the younger girl squeezed her hand.

“Don’t worry, Kyoko. Let’s give it a try, okay? Maybe this Yuuka-san can really help us.”

Kyoko hesitated briefly and then nodded. “Okay, I’m fine with it.”

Their teacher took out his phone and then wrote something on a small sheet of paper. “This is her LINE ID. She told me to give it to students if they need her help.”

“Thank you. I’ll send her a text later, then.” Kyoko did exactly that when she got home in the evening. She took her time in formulating something that she thought wouldn’t make the older girl hate her right off the bat.

 **You:** _Sugai-san, this is Saito Kyoko; maybe you remember my name from your last day in high school. I am going to participate in our school’s year-end-concert with my friend, and because we absolutely need to get the prize, we would greatly appreciate it if you could make a little time to listen to our music._

It sounded terribly formal and like nothing Kyoko would ever write, but she after realizing that rich people didn’t always care for what people poorer than them wanted or needed, she didn’t want to take any risks this time.

Sugai Yuuka’s reply came about half an hour later.

 **Sugai-san:** _Your name does ring a bell, Saito-san. You are the one the teachers were always complaining about, aren’t you? Of course I don’t mind listening to how you and your friend play. I would prefer it if we could meet up in the late afternoon; I’m sure that will fit well with your schedule as well. In that case, we could already meet tomorrow, if you feel ready for it. If not, I don’t mind picking a different day._

Kyoko let out a heavy sigh; of course the former student council president would remember the rumors about her being a yankee. She exited her LINE application and sent Ayaka a text.

 **From: You Today, 18:46  
** _Hey, I sent Sugai-san a message and she just replied. She said we could even meet tomorrow._

 **From: Ayaka Today, 18:49  
** _Seriously? That’s awesome! I don’t mind meeting up tomorrow, how about you?_

 **From: You Today, 18:50  
** _Yeah, that’s fine with me. I’ll ask her to come to the school tomorrow afternoon, then._

Opening her LINE app again, Kyoko already made up a short text to send to Yuuka.

 **You:** _Both Ayaka and me don’t mind meeting in the piano room tomorrow. We’re really glad you’re making time for us this soon, thank you very much._

 **Sugai-san:** _It’s no problem at all! If it’s tomorrow, I might have to bring someone else along; I hope you don’t mind. Akanen is very knowledgeable in music as well, so she might be able to give you a bit of advice as well._

“Akanen,” Kyoko muttered to herself, quickly realizing that this was the nickname people had used referring to Moriya Akane, the student council’s vice president. “Whoa, seems like we’ll be getting some real high-level feedback.” She quickly informed Ayaka about the new piece of information and then texted Yuuka back.

 **You:** _That’s no problem. It’ll be a pleasure to meet you and Moriya-san again._

 **Sugai-san:** _Alright, see you tomorrow then!_

 

* * *

 

Quite a bit away, in a nicely furnished apartment in a skyscraper, Sugai Yuuka put away her phone with an amused smile.

“Looks like you’re having a nice time,” her girlfriend Moriya Akane commented, smiling as well.

Yuuka agreed with a slight incline of her head. “You remember Saito Kyoko, don’t you?”

“The yankee?” Akane’s somewhat careless comment earned her a slightly skeptical glance from the older girl. “Okay, okay, right. You never thought she actually was one. Anyways, did something happen to her?”

“She sent me a message asking for advice. Seems like she’s going to participate in this year’s contest and absolutely needs to get first place.”

“Oh~” Akane hummed, lying down on the king-sized bed and spreading her arms comfortably. “So you’re going to help her, aren’t you?”

Yuuka nodded in agreement. “That’s right. I’m going to meet her tomorrow afternoon.”

“Tomorrow? But…”

“You can come along.”

Akane sighed, a playful pout on her lips. “Fine, I will. But in exchange, you’ll do whatever I want in the evening.”

Yuuka raised an eyebrow, but then nodded slightly. “Alright, I suppose I don’t have much of a choice, do I?”

“You don’t _want_ to have a choice, anyways,” Akane mumbled amusedly, patting the mattress next to her. “Come here now, Yukka—”

Yuuka placed a finger on Akane’s lips to silence her, shaking her head. “Not before dinner.”

A playfully disappointed pout on her lips, Akane got up and followed Yuuka to the kitchen to eat.

 

* * *

 

On the next day, after school, Ayaka and Kyoko were waiting for Yuuka and Akane in the piano room. Kyoko was plunking on the piano a bit and Ayaka was playing a few notes on her violin to warm herself up when the door opened.

“Sugai-senpai, Moriya-senpai,” Kyoko got up from the piano stool to greet the two older girls. “It’s nice to see you again.”

Yuuka gave her a smile and lowered her head slightly to greet her before turning to do the same towards Ayaka. “It’s nice to meet you, too. My name is Sugai Yuuka—Ayaka-san?”

Ayaka’s eyes widened slightly and she put down her violin. “Yuuka-san! I didn’t realize it was you Sensei and Kyoko were talking about.”

Kyoko looked around between them in confusion. “Wait, you know each other?”

“We met each other at a dinner a few weeks ago,” Yuuka explained, smiling amusedly. “Ayaka-san’s family was invited by my father.”

“That was when I still got along with my parents,” Ayaka muttered under her breath before lowering her head slightly towards Akane. “It’s nice to meet you, Moriya-san. I’m Takamoto Ayaka.”

“Moriya Akane,” Akane introduced herself with a small smile. “So, you two absolutely need to get first place in the contest?”

After glancing at each other briefly, Ayaka and Kyoko nodded eagerly. “Yes!”

Yuuka gave them a slightly amused smile. “May I ask why?” When they didn’t reply right away, she nodded in understanding. “Alright, then. Maybe another time. For now, why don’t you show us what you can do?”

“Okay.” Kyoko sat down on the piano stool again and Ayaka picked up her violin. Then, they started playing, allowing themselves to forget about anything else. When they were finished, they closed their eyes for a moment and when they opened them again, Yuuka and Akane were clapping their hands in unison.

“They’re good, aren’t they, Yukka?” Akane muttered, one eyebrow raised slightly. “Why are we even here if they’re this good?”

“Don’t say that,” Yuuka scolded her before turning to face Kyoko and Ayaka. “Akane is right, though. You’re very good, both of you. But, Kyoko-san… can I play for a bit?”

Kyoko nodded and got up, making room for Yuuka to sit on the piano stool.

The older girl sat down and placed her fingers on the keys after skimming through the sheet music on the music stand. There was something about her stance that was entirely different from Kyoko’s—where Kyoko looked passionate, Yuuka was exuding a cooler elegance. Her playing sounded different, too. It was more professional and calm.

Even though they were playing the same notes, when Yuuka was playing, it sounded like a different song. But, Ayaka silently thought to herself, she preferred Kyoko’s play, after all. Yuuka was amazing, but she had practiced too much.

But maybe ‘too much practice’ was what they were going to need for the contest.

When she finished playing, Yuuka turned back to face them. “This is how I played back then,” she explained. “It’s what made me win the contest in my third year.”

“I won by playing like Kyoko did, once. That was during our second year,” Akane cut in. “But that year, the judges were different people than usual, and Yuuka didn’t participate because she was sick.”

Yuuka raised an eyebrow. “Don’t say that like you wouldn’t have won if I had participated. You defeated me during our first year.”

Akane chuckled and waved her hand a bit dismissively as if to show that she didn’t consider that a serious win. Then, she clapped her hands once. “Anyways, Yukka is right. You two play really well, but if you want to win this year, you might need to sound a bit more… perfect. The level of competition really has gone up in the past years, after all.”

Kyoko furrowed her eyebrows slightly and looked over at Ayaka who gave her an encouraging nod. “Then… would you two mind meeting up with us again sometime so you can tell us if we improved?”

Yuuka gave them a smile and nodded. “Of course we can do that.”


	7. Chapter 7

After that first meeting, the four of them met up more often. It took Ayaka and Kyoko a few weeks, but about a week before the contest, they managed to get Yuuka to tell them that they sounded ready to win now.

“Seriously? Awesome!” Kyoko exclaimed and jumped up from the piano stool to hug Ayaka, who managed to get her violin out of the way just in time.

“She’s right. By the way…” Akane leaned onto one of the tables in the music room and looked at them curiously. “After all these weeks, can we know why you need to get that prize so badly?”

Kyoko and Ayaka exchanged a brief glance, then the older girl nodded slightly. Ayaka took a deep breath and turned to face the two young women. “Actually… our relationship depends on it. We—we’re dating, and if we don’t win, we’ll have to break up.”

When they heard that, Yuuka and Akane looked at each other and nodded in understanding. “Ah~, we figured it was something like that,” Akane smiled. “I’m glad we never went through anything like that, right, Yukka?”

Yuuka nodded and gave the younger girls a smile. “We’ll be rooting for you, then. If you don’t mind us coming to watch you, that is.”

“No, we don’t mind at all,” the two of them replied nearly at the same time.

“I’m glad.” Yuuka got up from the chair she’d been sitting in. “Then, see you on the day of the contest.”

Kyoko and Ayaka bowed slightly as their seniors left the room, and then Ayaka proceeded to put away her violin while Kyoko closed the piano.

“Um, Kyoko?” Ayaka spoke up once they were done. “Would you… like to come home with me today? I told my mum she’d be able to meet you before the contest…”

Kyoko shrugged slightly. “I don’t mind, but… are you sure it’ll be okay?”

Ayaka squeezed her hand, trying to give her girlfriend a reassuring smile. “I suppose it will…”

A small grin spread on Kyoko’s lips. “Okay then. Let’s go.” She held Ayaka’s hand on the entire way back to Ayaka’s house and only let go when they stood in front of the door.

The younger girl entered the house first and led the way to her mother’s office, hesitantly knocking at the door. “Mum…?”

“Ayaka, welcome home,” her mother called out to greet her. “Is there something you want?”

“Um, yes. Could you come to the living room, maybe?”

For a moment, it was quiet; then, Masaki replied, “Alright, wait for me there.”

Ayaka led the way to the living room and sat down next to Kyoko, resting her head on her girlfriend’s shoulder in an attempt to relax a bit.

“Hey, it’ll be fine,” Kyoko mumbled into her ear. “I mean, I don’t know your mum, but I’m sure nobody will die today.”

Ayaka managed a weak smile and kissed Kyoko’s cheek, just before the door opened and her mother came in.

“So, Ayaka, what was it… oh.” Masaki fell silent, simply staring at Kyoko for a moment. “You must be… Kyoko, then.”

Kyoko nodded slightly. “Yes, I’m Saito Kyoko. Nice to meet you.”

“Ayaka has been talking about you a lot lately.”

“She has? I guess she must really like me, then.” Kyoko grinned a little, obviously much less nervous about the whole situation than Ayaka herself was.

The younger girl nudged Kyoko with her elbow gently for that comment, and Kyoko couldn’t hold back a small chuckle.

Masaki sighed quietly. “Yes, she does,” she said in reply to Kyoko’s comment. “She said you were better than any man we’d try to set her up with.”

Both Kyoko and Ayaka turned a little red now. “That’s not…” Kyoko trailed off in slight embarrassment. “I’m not like that.”

“You are,” Ayaka mumbled under her breath, blushing even more.

Masaki watched them in silence and then let out another sigh. She was glad to see her daughter happy, even if she still wasn’t entirely used to the fact that Ayaka was dating a girl who was that much ‘below their standards.’ “Do you think you’ll win that contest?”

The girls looked at each other briefly, but then they nodded decisively. “Yeah, we will,” Kyoko replied. “Yuuka-senpai said so, too.”

“Yuuka-senpai?”

“Sugai Yuuka-san,” Ayaka explained, realizing that it might benefit them if her parents knew that a member of the Sugai family approved of their playing. “We went to a dinner hosted by her family a few weeks ago, do you remember? She kept an eye on us while we were practicing because she’s very experienced regarding music.”

Her mother nodded slowly as she remembered. “You’re right. How is she doing?”

“Seems like she’s doing well; she’s still attending that college—and the way she plays the piano is so _perfect_ , I’m sure you and Dad would love it.” After all, Ayaka knew that her parents were always set on getting everything done perfectly, and she was sure that if Kyoko played the same way Yuuka did, she would be a good step closer to getting her parents’ approval.

“Is that so? In that case, I’d like to listen to her sometime.”

Ayaka nodded slightly to show that she understood. Maybe she wouldn’t get around to asking Yuuka to play for her parents, but she thought Kyoko’s playing would come pretty close to Yuuka’s the way it was now. “So… Mum, you’ll come and watch us at the concert, right?”

Masaki gave them a small smile. “I will. After you’ve been practicing so hard all this time… I suppose you at least deserve a chance.”

Ayaka couldn’t resist the urge to pull her into a hug. “Thanks, Mum. I promise we won’t disappoint you.”

“Now that’s a big promise,” Kyoko chuckled next to her before her expression turned serious again and she lowered her head slightly. “But she’s right. Thank you for giving us a chance, Takamoto-san.”

Ayaka’s mother shook her head slightly. “That still doesn’t mean you’ll get my husband’s approval. You shouldn’t thank me until he approves of your relationship.”

“But at least we more or less have _your_ approval now,” Ayaka said, relief clearly audible in her voice.

“Well, I should get back to my work,” Masaki smiled weakly and got up. “You two can do whatever you want, but don’t forget to do your homework, alright?”

Ayaka sighed when she heard that, but nodded. “Sure. See you at dinner.” Once her mother was gone, she leaned against Kyoko happily. “That went well,” she smiled. “Hey, do you want to spend the night here? We could do the things we did when you were here for a week. Watching movies and things like that…”

Kyoko grinned, leaning in for a brief kiss. “Sounds good, let’s do that.”

They went upstairs to Ayaka’s room for a bit and then had dinner together with Ayaka’s mother (her father hadn’t returned home from work yet). After that, they returned to Ayaka’s room and put on a movie before lying down on the bed together to watch it.

“Let’s practice some more tomorrow,” Ayaka eventually suggested, her head already resting on Kyoko’s shoulder tiredly. “I want us to be perfect during the contest.”

Kyoko smiled a little. “Okay, sounds good. But we probably shouldn’t overdo it, since Yuuka-san already said we were ready.”

“Mhm…” Ayaka nodded and sleepily shifted, burying her face in Kyoko’s neck. Only minutes later, her breathing had gone quiet and steady, and Kyoko carefully reached out for the TV remote, making sure not to wake her girlfriend up. Then, she switched off the TV and the lights before lying down, one arm wrapped around Ayaka protectively.

 

* * *

 

When they went to school in the next morning, they were greeted by their classmates cheerfully. “Kyoko, Aya! How’s the practice for the concert going?” Kumi, their class president, asked them cheerfully.

“Ah, it’s going well. We’re capable of winning, it seems,” Kyoko grinned proudly.

“Oh? Who said that?”

“Yuuka-senpai.”

Whispers of surprise rose in the class. “So that’s why we saw them leave the school a few days ago!” Mana exclaimed. “Did Sugai-senpai and Moriya-senpai help you practice?”

Ayaka nodded. “They were content with our music, so they said we should end it here. Of course we’ll still practice for the remaining days, but they won’t come to see us again until the contest.”

“Eh~, that’s awesome! I wish we’d gotten help from them. I’m pretty sure we’d be able to win if they’d given us advice.” Shiho sounded a little jealous as she glanced over at Kumi, who would be participating in the contest with her.

Kyoko nudged her classmate with her elbow. “Shut up, if you’d talked to Sensei, you might’ve been able to get their help as well. After all, he was the one who told us to participate in the first place.”

Talks like this were what they spent the next few days with. During their breaks and after school, they went to the piano room to practice—and then, the day of the contest came.

Both Kyoko and Ayaka had put on some of the nicest clothes they had for this occasion. Ayaka was wearing a dark red dress and she had her hair braided to two pigtails while Kyoko’s hair was pulled back to a tight ponytail and the older girl was wearing a long black skirt and a white blouse. They hugged each other tightly when they met up in front of the school’s gym, where the contest was going to take place.

“You look great,” Kyoko mumbled into Ayaka’s ear, only to get the same comment from her girlfriend while they were entering the gym.

“Oh, so here you two are,” they heard Yuuka’s voice behind them and they turned around to find the young woman smiling at them encouragingly.

Behind her, Akane gave them a wide grin. “Don’t you dare put us to shame,” she smirked.

Kyoko let out a short laugh. “Don’t worry, we’ll be better than you two ever were.”

Akane nodded her head affirmatively. “That’s the attitude you need. When you go on stage, just focus on nothing but the music. That’s what we always did, and it worked out perfectly each time.”

“Thanks, Yuuka-senpai, Akane-senpai.”

Yuuka smiled softly. “Don’t thank us just yet. Good luck.” With that, the two of them headed to two free seats in the gym while Kyoko and Ayaka went to the backstage area. There, they waited for their turn in silence, watching the other participants perform.

“And now,” the commentator, a third-year student from the Student Council, spoke, “Takamoto Ayaka and Saito Kyoko from class 2-B, playing the violin and the piano.”

Kyoko closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, squeezing her girlfriend’s hand; then she grinned at Ayaka. “Let’s go and win this.”

A wide smile spread on Ayaka’s lips as she nodded. “Yeah.”


	8. Chapter 8

****They played like they never had before. While they were playing, it was completely silent in the gym, and when they finished, the room seemed to be exploding with applause. It wasn’t that much different from how the audience had reacted to the other performers, but Kyoko and Ayaka could tell from the looks on Akane and Yuuka’s faces that they had played even better than during their practice sessions.

They headed backstage, where they were welcomed by Kumi and Shiho who were going to perform after them. “You were awesome,” Kumi muttered to them with a smile, giving them a thumbs-up.

“Thanks. Good luck to you two,” Ayaka gave them a smile as well, hoping they wouldn’t hear from her voice that she didn’t mean that as seriously as she should have. She and Kyoko left the backstage area because the performers were allowed to watch the other performances from the back of the gym, and once they had sat down in two free chairs, Ayaka leaned her head on Kyoko’s shoulder. “Do you think we’ll win?”

Kyoko flicked a finger against her girlfriend’s forehead. “Shut up and enjoy the performance, okay? We did pretty well, so I guess it’s pretty obvious that we’re not in the last place.”

Ayaka smiled a little. “You’re right.”

They watched the remaining performances in silence, and then the MC announced a short break so the music teachers could choose a winner. During that break, Kyoko and Ayaka left the gym to get some fresh air, and Yuuka and Akane came up to them.

“Hi, you two,” Akane grinned, high-fiving them with a proud expression on her face. “You did great earlier, I’m sure you’ll win.”

Kyoko smirked a little. “Thanks, I know.”

“Kyoko!” Ayaka hissed, elbowing her girlfriend gently before smiling at the two young women thankfully. “This wouldn’t have been possible without your help, Yuuka-san, Akane-san. Thank you.”

“You don’t need to thank us,” Yuuka smiled softly. “We’re glad we could help.”

“I would’ve been mad if you hadn’t at least played this good, though,” Akane said, and for some reason she sounded more serious than as if she was joking.

A few minutes later, the audience and performers were called back into the gym so the winner could be announced.

“This year, too, the teachers had difficulties choosing only one group as the winner,” the MC said, “but in the end, they managed to choose someone. Sensei, please announce the winner.” She handed the microphone to one of the teachers.

The teacher cleared his throat and nodded. “As she already said, we had difficulties choosing only one winner because we had many great performances this year. But, we made up our minds. This year’s winners are… Takamoto Ayaka and Saito Kyoko.”

Ayaka nearly screamed when she heard that, taking Kyoko’s hand and squeezing it as tightly as she never had before. “Kyoko! Kyoko, we won!”

“I know!” Even Kyoko wasn’t able to hide the relief and happiness in her voice as she hugged Ayaka before pulling her on stage. Unable to suppress their smiles, they accepted the certificate the teacher was offering to them and then bowed to the audience.

The rest of the ceremony rushed past them like a river; they got congratulated by some more people, mostly their classmates, but afterwards, they barely remembered in which order they talked to them and who of them said what.

And then, the event was over. The people didn’t immediately go home; many parents and students stayed behind to exchange a few more words with their friends and acquaintances or the teachers, but Kyoko and Ayaka made their way out of the gym as soon as they could—they still had something important to take care of.

Ayaka’s parents were standing a bit apart from all the other people, waiting for their daughter. They turned to face the two girls when they jogged over to them. “Ayaka,” Ryo said coolly.

Masaki, however gave her daughter a warm smile. “You did amazing, Ayaka,” she said before turning to Kyoko. “And you too, Kyoko-san. I heard you played well, but I didn’t expect _this_.”

Kyoko lowered her head slightly, smiling. “Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

Ayaka turned to her father. “And you, Dad? How did you like it?”

A sigh left Ryo’s lips and he furrowed his eyebrows strictly. “It was better than I expected,” he finally admitted.

“And we won,” Ayaka added decisively. “That means we’re allowed to keep dating each other now, right?”

“…yes,” her father said, although his reluctance was still clearly audible in his voice. “Yes, you can keep dating… _her_.”

Kyoko bowed before him thankfully. “Thank you,” she said, and she meant it. “I’m aware you’re not happy about this, but I’m glad you’re not forcing us to break up.”

Ryo clicked his tongue in slight annoyance. “Just don’t drag my daughter into your problems,” he frowned. “I’ll stop complaining, but that doesn’t mean that I’m approving of this relationship—”

“Oh Dad, can’t you at least be happy for us because we won the contest?” Ayaka cut in, wanting to end the talk about her relationship with Kyoko now that she’d gotten the confirmation she had wanted.

“…I am happy for you.”

Ayaka raised an eyebrow, but she wasn’t in the mood to fight with him. “…alright. In that case, thank you… I’m glad you liked how we played.”

“Ah.” Kyoko sounded utterly surprised just with that one syllable. “My parents are here. I didn’t know they’d make it; they said they both had to work, so they probably wouldn’t be able to come.”

Masaki gave the girls a small smile. “I suppose in that case, we’d better leave before Ryo ends up accidentally breaking his promise. I look forward to meeting you again, Kyoko-san.”

Kyoko bowed again, mumbling a goodbye, and then turned to greet her parents. “Hi, Mum, Dad.”

“Kyoko! I never expected you to play this well; you really did a great job,” her mother immediately started off, and a quiet sigh left Kyoko’s lips.

“Um, thanks, I guess.”

“What, aren’t you happy to have won?”

“I am. It’s just that the way you said this sounded kinda weird,” Kyoko muttered before clearing her throat. “Anyways, yeah. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“We really did,” her father added, a proud smile on his face. “Ayaka-chan, you did an amazing job as well. Kyoko really is lucky to have found a partner like you to play with.”

Ayaka gave them a smile, bowing slightly. “Thank you, I’m glad to hear that. But in fact, I’m the lucky one; I never expected to meet anyone like Kyoko in my life, so I’m very happy to have done this performance with her now.”

“Hey, will you stop saying this cheesy stuff?” Kyoko elbowed her girlfriend, blushing slightly. “I’m getting hungry, so can we go eat something?”

“Ah, of course. Would you like to come with us, Ayaka-chan?” Kyoko’s father offered, and the younger girl nodded eagerly.

“I’d love to, if you don’t mind.”

So Kyoko’s parents took them to a restaurant they often went to, and Ayaka enjoyed herself a lot because she hadn’t been to this restaurant before—it was one that her parents would have deemed beneath their dignity. Afterwards, Ayaka sent her parents a text saying that she would be spending the night at Kyoko’s place and went home with Kyoko’s family.

About an hour later, the two of them were lying on Kyoko’s bed, snuggling close to each other. “I’m glad,” Ayaka happily mumbled into Kyoko’s neck. “We won, everything ended well… and we had a lot of fun, didn’t we?”

“Even if we hadn’t won, that performance was great,” Kyoko agreed. “It would’ve been a fitting end for our relationship, I guess.”

“Hey, don’t talk about the end! The end’s nowhere to be seen, we’re just starting,” Ayaka declared, a grin on her lips, and Kyoko smirked.

“Yeah, you’re right. I was just saying what crossed my mind.”

A chuckle left Ayaka’s lips and she let out a content sigh. “I know, I know. And now… let’s sleep, okay? I’m tired.”

Kyoko nodded and reached for the light switch, turning the whole room dark. “Good night then.” She kissed Ayaka’s forehead and listened to the younger girl’s quiet breathing, a smile on her lips. Ayaka was right; they were really just starting.


End file.
